Moving On One Chicken Salad Sandwhich At A Time
by Fan Of Good TV Shows
Summary: This is a GioBetty Fic about how they develop feelings for each other and how Betty moves on with Gio after Henry leaves. A little HenryBetty as well.
1. Chapter 1

-1Moving On One Chicken Salad Sandwhich At A Time.

Disclaimer, I do not own Ugly Betty or any of the characters

This is my first fan fic about Ugly Betty, it's little about Betty and Henry's relationship and how she deals with him leaving and ends up moving on with Gio. HB and GB Fan Fic. I would appreciate reviews and feedback on this story.

**Chapter 1 **

The alarm click beeped and Betty turned over and turned it off quickly. She was still exhausted. The past week had been pretty hectic for her. Mode had a big photo shoot to show off the top fashion trends, clothing designs and must haves items for Spring. Mode had hired Miles Preston, one of the best photographers in the fashion industry to do the photo shoot. Betty and Daniel had spent all week coming up with various ideas to present to Miles for the fashion shoot, and he kept rejecting all of their ideas. Miles was a very demanding person and he was a difficult photographer to work with. He liked to take ideas from the companies that employed him and "weave them into something magical" as he had told Daniel and Betty. He refused to work with companies that had people that were not capable of coming up with "fantastic ideas" that he could use and put his own spin on in his photography. He felt that a company was not worth any good if the people that worked there did not take enough "pride" in creating their own ideas, and letting him be the one to execute them. These were all the things that he had said to Daniel and Betty in Daniel's office, after he had finally agreed to do the upcoming photo shoot for Mode, for one of their most important issues of the year. He wanted their ideas, but he wanted _perfect_ ones, and that was something that Betty and Daniel had not managed to achieve yet.

They were still trying to come up with new ideas to please Miles, but they were running out of time and the date for the photo shoot was coming up quickly. Daniel had stressed how much Mode needed Miles, and that if they wanted this photoshoot to go well, and for things to be perfect for their upcoming issue, then they needed to play by Miles rules. So Betty had spent the entire week trying to come up with new ideas, as well as running errands for Daniel, running tedious and strange errands for Miles, and did the other things that she normally did at her job and helped Daniel take care of other business for the magazine. She was beat.

Betty sat up on her bed, and yawned. Well, she thought to herself, at least one good thing had come out of this busy week, she had been able to avoid Gio. All the work that she had to do, made it easier to avoid him. Betty had very little time to do anything other than work over the past week, she wasn't even able to take her usual hour long lunch breaks. She had to cut that time in half, and less time meant grabbing something from one of the vendors that visited Mode or ordering food early so that it would arrive in time for her lunch break, instead of going out like she normally did for lunch and that included making trips to Gio's Deli.

Not that there was anything wrong with Gio's Deli. The atmosphere was comfortable and the food was incredibly delicious. Betty thought that Gio had the best sandwiches in the city. She had never tasted Chicken Salad as delicious as the way that Gio made it. That salad in between two slices of bread, sometimes, wheat, sometimes rye, sometimes sourdough, Betty did like to mix things up, topped with three sun dried tomatoes, sometimes Gio would slip a few more up there for her, was _amazing_. Betty missed that Chicken Salad. No, it wasn't the food that kept Betty away, from Gio's Deli, it was well _Gio._ The man that she was trying to avoid. Not that Gio was a horrible person. Yes, he did grate her nerves at times, with his overconfident, attitude, inappropriate jokes, and the way that he was constantly pushing her, pushing her to examine things that she wanted and needed, and pushing her to do something about some of those things, even when she didn't want to. At first Betty was somewhat turned off by Gio's demeanor, but she had gotten used to it and him and had even come to care for him as a friend. A friend that constantly pushed her buttons but a friend nonetheless.

So it was not even Gio's personality that was keeping her away from him and his chicken salad. It was her promise to her boyfriend Henry. She has promised Henry that she would stop spending time with Gio. For some reason unknown to Betty, Henry felt threatened by Gio and his presence in her life. He always felt the need to compete with Gio, and even told Betty this last week. This had left her stumped. She had wondered why Henry felt upset about her friendship with Gio. That was all that it was between them, a friendship. There was nothing for Henry to worry about and Betty had tried to assure him of this. Sure Amanda had said that Gio liked her, but what did Amanda know? She was probably bored and that is why she claimed that Gio had feelings for Betty. She often used boredom as her excuse for giving Betty advice about her relationship with her "nerd lover" as she often called Henry and how to deal with the "drama" with his "flamed haired baby mama" back in Tucson. Betty wasn't going to go by what Amanda said about Gio.

There was no way that he had feelings for her. Betty figured that she probably wasn't even his type. He probably liked types more like Hilda her sister,_who_ he did go out with once, and it had appeared that both he and her sister had hit it off. Betty had expected them to continue dating, but for some reason they decided not to date any more and that surprised her. She thought that they were good for each other. She had never asked her sister Hilda, why things didn't work out between her and Gio.

"Hija come down for breakfast" her father's warm and kind voice interrupted Betty's thoughts. "I'm coming" she called back, smiling as she smelled the tantalizing scent of her father's famous Huevos Rancheros, She loved her father's Huevos Rancheros. He was a wonderful cook and no one could make Huevos Rancheros like he could. He was an expert at making them, much like Gio was an expert at making his sandwiches. _Gio_. Now why was she thinking of him again, it was best if she got him out of her mind, at least for now. She had made a promise to Henry that she was going to stay away from him and she was determined to do that. She really loved Henry and she wanted to make him happy, they had so little time left before the baby was born and he had to leave, and she wanted every second to be spent in peace and happiness, they couldn't have that if he felt unhappy about her relationship with Gio. That is why she _had_ to end her friendship with Gio, for Henry's sake. Betty sighed and stood up. She went and slipped on her slippers and headed down stairs to eat breakfast with her family.


	2. Chapter 2

-1Thanks for the review and the comments.

**Chapter 2**

Gio walked down the street to his shop enjoying the cool, crisp air. He was walking toward his deli that he recently opened and he wanted to get things ready before the customers started arriving at 11:00. His Uncle Antonio probably wasn't coming until a little while later to help him. He had borrowed Gio's van and was probably out running errands. As Gio walked along, he put his hands in the pockets of his jacket and began to think about his plan. Well at least _one _of his plans. He was a little bit closer to having his dream of owning a huge restaurant offering a large variety of sandwiches, he wanted to offer at least 1,000, and that featured a bar with unlimited condiments. He would call this place Gio's Deli Depot and Gio had started working towards this dream.

First, he had started out with a cart going around selling his sandwiches to the various businesses. That was okay for a while, but of course Gio wanted more. He had wanted to be more than just the sandwich guy with the cart, he wanted to have his very own successful business, and possibly be the owner of more than one Depot, once he got the first one off the ground. Gio had decided one day after selling his sandwiches from a cart that he was going to start working on the second part of his plan, and he started working towards owning a small deli, and he planned on continuing from there

Lucky for him fate assisted him in his plan in the form of a girl named Betty Suarez. Betty had helped bring Gio, one step closer to his dream. Gio had no idea that things would turn out the way that they did after his first encounter with Betty. Gio had met Betty when she had came to get one of his sandwiches. He had just started selling sandwiches at Mode, and was annoyed at the atmosphere and the type of people that he saw walking around. He found the ten foot, eighty pound models unappealing, and the rest of The "Mode Girls" as Gio called them, the snotty women that surrounded Mode who had about as much substance and depth as the pairs of overpriced shoes that they wore. These people did not interest or excite Gio. Often he would snicker at some of their antics, and would serve them up a few tomatoes and a handful of olives, when they visited his cart, since they never bought one of his sandwiches.

After the first few days of selling his sandwiches at Mode, and after he sold someone a plate of sliced cucumbers, Betty approached him wanting to buy a turkey sandwich. Gio was surprised when he first saw Betty. She didn't look like any other person that worked at Mode, and definitely not like one of the Mode girls who had he grown to have contempt for. She was dressed funky, in a slightly mismatched outfit, had red rimmed glasses that she was pushing up on her nose, long brown hair, and when she smiled at him, a mouth full of metallic braces. She was definitely not a Mode girl, she was unlike any of the women and models that he had seen at Mode.

Betty greeted him with a warm smile, her shiny, dark eyes looking at him and then down at his sandwich cart. He could tell she was an eater, and for a person that was trying to make it in the food business like he was, that was great news. They talked for a little bit, she told him what she did at Mode, and he sold her the sandwich, with three tomatoes, the amount of tomatoes that he normally put on his sandwiches. She thanked him and left. For reasons unknown to him at the time, Gio had found himself hoping that he would see Betty again, and not just because she was an eater.

He got his wish and less than a few minutes later she returned asking him to give her a few more tomatoes. Gio had scoffed at her request. He knew how to make sandwiches, he had been doing it for a while, and three sun dried tomatoes was enough for a turkey sandwich. Any more and it would overpower the sandwich, taking away from the flavor. Gio expertly told Betty this hoping that she would understand and drop the issue. However, being the feisty little woman that she was, she didn't.

She had said that it would be okay, that she could handle more than three tomatoes and continued to ask for them. Gio had shaken his head, when she said this. He didn't have time for her antics, he needed to take his business to another floor and he wasn't going to let this woman, no matter how interesting she seemed, or the fact that she was an eater, or even though after really looking at her, kind of cute, tell him how to make _his _sandwiches. No way he was going to let that happen, and he brushed her off and went on his way. Little did he know how that conversation would end up changing his life.

A couple of hours later Gio was storming through the floors of Mode looking for Betty. He couldn't believe it. How dare she get him fired? She must have complained to her boss about him, and how he was an evil rotten tomato hoarder, and convinced him that this was just cause to get Gio fired. Gio was angry. His first impression had been wrong. Betty was a Mode Girl. She may have been a different version but she had the same selfish, underhanded traits that the rest of them possessed. Gio found Betty and let her have it. He told her exactly what he thought of her getting him fired, and he even dropped some horrifying details about Fat Free mayo that had the rest of the people at Mode spitting out their sandwiches. He considered that sweet justice and stormed out of Mode leaving behind a surprised and remorseful Betty.

Later on in the day when Gio was getting ready to get into his van and go home, Betty came running up to him. _This girl sure knows how to move fast, _Gio had thought when she approached him. She had then apologized to him and had told him that she had gotten his job back for him.. She then emphasized that this latest action of hers had proven that she was not a Mode Girl. Gio had given her a little smile and looked her up and down. He then decided that she was definitely _not_ a Mode Girl. Gio then told Betty that he wasn't going to take his job back and that because of her he had decided to go full speed ahead with his plan. He felt that her getting him fired was definitely a sign that it was time for him to move on, and put phase two of his plan into action. He told her about his plans for opening up his own deli, and then eventually his large restaurant. Betty had listened to him, and asked him to take her to get a wheelchair for her boss, and told him that the company would pay him for it. Gio had taken her up on her offer because he could put the extra money to good use, and she _was _kind of cute. Betty had climbed into Gio's van to go to New Jersey and that had been the start of their friendship, and possibly something more, as Gio found himself hoping for later on.

Gio had now reached the front door to his deli, and paused to look admiringly at the pickle underneath the words Gio's Deli. Right now he was the owner of this little sandwich establishment. but sooner or later he was going to move onto bigger and better things and that made him happy. He felt that he had no one to thank but Betty for that. _Betty._ Gio sighed and took out his key, opened the door and walked into his deli looking at the dark filled room. He went over and cut on one of the lights and his mind was filled with thoughts of Betty. Over the past few months Gio, had grown closer to her, he had now considered them to be friends, and even though sometimes she got under his skin, he enjoyed the time that they spent together.

Betty was funny, sometimes unintentionally, headstrong, feisty and passionate, all traits that Gio found attractive in a woman. Gio also thought that Betty was very intelligent and hard-working, even though sometimes he felt she needed to be challenged so that she could rise to her full potential. He admired her for many things, including the fact that she wanted to run her own magazine. She was ambitious and Gio liked that. He considered himself to be ambitious as well, and thought that was one of the things he and Betty had in common. He wondered if they had as much in common as she did with Egg Salad, otherwise known as Henry, her boyfriend.

Gio scoffed to himself. Who was he kidding? Henry was Betty's _soul mate_, she had stated this to Gio time and time again, to the point to where he started to cringe when he heard her say it. Perfect Henry. The do good accountant who was Betty's ideal man, who rarely ever cursed, who had perfectly starched shirts, Henry of the creased Khaki pants, Henry who checked up on Betty three times a day just to see if she was okay and to tell her that he loved her. That Henry. The same Henry who scheduled a movie night at least once a week for Betty and who saved the ice cream for another night. The Henry that did all of these wonderful things that Betty felt the need to bring up whenever she was around Gio, and simultaneously when Henry wasn't around. _That _Henry.

As these thoughts were going through his head, Gio frowned and he went to the different tables in his restaurant and started to take the chairs down. He didn't know why the thought of Henry bothered him so much. It couldn't be just because he was perfect, well _almost_ perfect, he did get another girl pregnant who lived in Tucson. As far as Gio knew the baby would be born in a couple of months and then Henry was going to go and live in Tucson to raise his child and leave Betty alone. _Betty_. As her name crossed his mind again, Gio could feel his heart pounding fast.

"What is wrong with me?" he wondered aloud to himself as he took the last chair down. "Well, for starters you have your father's nose and your grandfather's height, but at least you don't have your grandfather's hairline." A deep, slightly accented voice remarked behind him. "Hey, Uncle Antonio." Gio greeted his Uncle warmly and went over to the countertop. "Hey, Giovanni, you getting things ready to go?" his Uncle asked him smiling and joined his nephew behind the counter. "I will be ready soon enough, Uncle Antonio" Gio responded back. As his Uncle started to help him set up for the day, he turned to Gio and asked, "So what was I walking into a minute ago, were you having a one man counseling session?'' Gio laughed his Uncle's question off nervously. "No, no, just wondering..." His Uncle Antonio looked at his nephew inquiringly. "Just wondering, what is wrong with me for thinking that most of the customers are not going to like the new raspberry mustard that I ordered. It's delicious, and I think that it would be especially tasty on the roast beef. And with that statement, Gio pushed all thoughts of Betty to the back of his mind and continued to get ready for his first batch of customers.


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

Betty was running around Mode, trying to find Daniel, Miles wanted to see him now. He had claimed it was some type of emergency and only Daniel could fix it. Betty was getting tired of Miles behavior. He was the best photographer in the business, but he was very demanding, rude and annoying. But, even though Betty didn't like him and he was difficult to work with she knew they needed to keep him for this photo shoot. And keeping him meant doing what he wanted and right now that involved Daniel. While Betty was looking for Daniel she wished to herself that the day would end and that the week would be over with. Working with Miles was exhausting, and Betty also had not gotten much sleep for the whole week. She was tired. Plus she hadn't seen Gio all week, since she promised Henry that she wouldn't and that bothered her more than she was willing to admit.

As Betty was frantically looking for Daniel, she almost ran into Marc and Amanda who were walking side by side, so close that they looked like Siamese twins. Their heads were close together and Betty knew that they were gossiping, plotting, and scheming, their usual behavior. Betty almost ran into them but stopped herself short. As she came face to face with them they both stopped, looked over at each other, back at Betty and smirked.

"Well, someone looks like they are about to jump out of their old penny loafers" Marc observed looking Betty over. "What's wrong Betty, did Fred leave you already and go home to Wilma and Pebbles?" He stuck out his lower lip and gave her a look of mock sympathy.

Betty cringed at his remark and said through clenched teeth, "No, Marc, Henry has not left for Tucson _yet_, his daughter is not due until a couple of more months." She gave a Marc a questioning look, "How did you know that Henry was having a girl?" Marc waved a hand and dismissed her question. "_Please, _News travels around here faster than the Paparazzi would to get to a wedding for Brangelina."

"So," he continued and leaned slightly towards her, his look changing to one of curiosity, "Why the sad face, you look even more drab than usual."

Betty sighed. "I'm trying to find Daniel because...", she was cut off by Amanda. "I know what's wrong with Betty." she proclaimed raising one eyebrow, and giving Marc a knowing look. "She's all hot and bothered over that sandwich guy Tio."

Betty frowned and looked at Amanda. "You mean _Gio_?" Amanda smirked. "So Tio is his last name?" Betty was getting even more frustrated. "Yes, Amanda his name is Gio _Tio _and I _totally_ have the hots for him, that is why I am running around looking for Daniel so that we can actually _work _and finish next month's issue before our deadline runs out." Betty remarked sarcastically, rolling her eyes.

"I knew it!" A look of satisfaction came into Amanda's eyes. "You totally have the hots for the man of the luncheon meats."

"What?! I--I don't.." Betty stammered getting more annoyed by the minute, with Marc and Amanda's harassment. _Where on earth is Daniel?_ she wondered. Betty was worried that if she couldn't find him in time ,Miles, would leave. And that If he did they wouldn't be able to find anyone else as good as he was. He was considered the best in the industry, losing him would be a huge blow to Mode, and they would never get the photo shoot done and the photos put in the magazine in time. They needed Miles to do this photo shoot and Betty needed to find Daniel. As Betty was going over the list of places in her head that she thought Daniel might be, her thoughts were interrupted by Amanda.

"So since Sir Dweebo, is no longer the right flavor of dip for your chips, are you going to have a torrid affair with Gio Tio?" Amanda had a mischievous look on her face as she asked Betty this question. Betty gave Amanda a look of confusion. "What? I am very happy with Henry. " Marc sighed and gave Betty a knowing look, a look that said that he knew _exactly_ what Amanda was talking about and that Betty was clueless. "You _have_ changed the flavor of your chips, Betty."

Betty still confused as to what Marc and Amanda meant about the chip comment, looked down at her watch. On a regular, hectic, very busy work day, she could be annoyed, insulted, confused yet slightly amused at whatever secret code that Marc and Amanda dished out to her. But today she felt the first three feelings ten times as much and was not the least bit amused. She didn't have time for this, she had to find Daniel. Betty walked away from Marc and Amanda, and as she did, she could hear Marc say to Amanda.

"I don't know what that sandwich guys sees in her, but then again, he sells salami, so how good can his judgement be?"


	4. Chapter 4

Thanks for the review and comments. I appreciate it.

**Chapter 4**

Betty was still looking for Daniel. She had searched everywhere, how could he just up and disappear like this? Betty knew that Miles was getting more impatient by the minute. Betty decided to go to the closet and see Christina, maybe she knew where Daniel was at. When Betty reached the closet she didn't find Christina but she did find--Daniel.

"Daniel!" Betty practically shouted, anxious to see him. "Where have you been? I have been looking all over for you! Miles says he needs to see you right away, something about it being an emergency."

Daniel pulled out a short green dress. "You think this dress will go good with my eyes? How about these shoes, will they make me look too tall?" He asked jokingly. He showed Betty the black velvet, pumps he had grabbed in his other hand.

"Daniel, this is no time for games. " Betty was exasperated and was curious as to why her boss was hanging out in the closet among all the fashion attire. Daniel had rarely visited the closet. "How long have you been down here, and what _are_ you doing here? Miles Preston wants to see you immediately."

"Sorry, Betty" Daniel apologized. "I just wanted to get away for a while, I was walking around, and walked past here. I had never really looked inside the closet before. I came down here a few times to see Christina but I had never really paid attention to the clothes inside. But today while I was walking past here I thought I caught a glimpse of a dress that one of the models I used to date once wore. I really loved the way that dress looked on her, so I went inside to check if it was that dress and…"

Betty laughed. "Okay, Daniel that sounds interesting, and you can tell me about your adventures in the closet later on but right now we need to talk about Miles Preston."

"Miles Preston" the name shot out of Daniel's mouth in a disgusted tone. He put the dress and the shoes back where they belonged, stepped out of the closet and stood in front of Betty. "Oh, what on earth could the _great_ Miles Preston want?" he asked sarcastically.

"I have no idea, Daniel, but he says he needs to see you _now_, and I think we need to move along and go see what he wants. Mode is going to start doing the photo shoot this weekend, remember? Miles says that he loves to work on Sundays." Betty stopped talking for a moment and looked closer at Daniel's face. He had a couple of bags underneath his eyes, and there was a mixed look of weariness and annoyance behind them. He looked almost as exhausted as she felt. She started to understand more why he went "missing."

"Yes, Betty I know that the photo shoot is Sunday, how could I not since Mode rarely does photo shoots on Sunday? It would typically be an inconvenience for us. What am I saying it _is_ an inconvenience for us. Quite frankly Miles, _is_ an inconvenience for us. " Daniel went over and sat in one of the chairs that Christina had in the room. Betty went over and sat beside him, grateful for this brief moment where she could sit down and rest a little.

"I know how you feel Daniel, Miles is a little annoying." Daniel gave her a look. "Okay, he is _very _annoying, as well as---demanding, arrogant, rude and a bit weird."

Daniel nodded his head in agreement. "He is very overbearing. If Alexis weren't breathing down my neck, yapping at me to get him to complete this photo shoot, I probably would have let him go already. But she insists that he is the best and that we need to keep him. So, I'm trying not to lose my cool with him. But it is hard, and he is pretty difficult to work with. I am literally out of ideas to present to him for the photo shoot and we're supposed to be doing it in two days."

An idea came into Betty's head after Daniel finished speaking. She turned her chair so that she could face Daniel. "Daniel, do you remember when we were trying to get the famous Japanese designer Oshi to do business with us? But how he wouldn't discuss anything with us unless we gave him a fantastic dinner."

Daniel nodded remembering that time. "Oshi was used to getting expensive meals, and he wanted his whole entourage fed. Of course we had a very small budget, and if we didn't find a way to feed Oshi and his crew, Wilhemina would have done it, and then we and Mode would have been at her mercy."

"Right!" Betty got really excited as she started to tell Daniel her idea. "So I thought about the things that Oshi really liked, like how much he loved the color white, and some other things that were really appealing to him. We focused on how we could find an affordable way to give him that…"

Daniel smiled, recollecting the idea that Betty had come up with. "We took him to New Jersey to The White Tassell to feed him and his posse hamburgers." He gave a small laugh. "I was so worried that it wasn't going to work but.."

"It did. Oshi loved the burgers, at least that's what one of his men said. And we managed to get him to do business with us, all because we thought about what he really liked and came up with a rather simple solution to it. Daniel.." Betty reached out and touched him on the shoulder. I think that we are over thinking this. Miles says that he wants some fantastic ideas from us, but that doesn't mean that they have to be complicated ones, even though those are the types we have been presenting to him. Maybe we should try to think about ideas that are simpler, and effective just like we did in the Oshi situation. I think that we should give it a try."

Daniel smiled. "You're right Betty, we have been over thinking this, I think that we should give your suggestion a try. "It did work for Oshi."

Betty stood up. "Great!" She flashed Daniel a smile and motioned for him to come with her. "Let's go and see what Miles wants, and then we can start brainstorming about some of those ideas." Daniel stood up and followed Betty out of the room.

A couple of hours later, after Daniel had met with Miles and he and Betty had come up with some ideas, three of which Miles actually accepted, Daniel turned to Betty in his office and stated. "It's about lunchtime, I'm in the mood for one of Gio's Reuben sandwiches, could you run down there and get me one. Well, Get me two, I'm starving. And pick up something for yourself as well." Betty froze for a moment.

_Daniel wants me to go to Gio's Deli, I can't do that. I promised Henry that I would stay away from him, and I have been avoiding him all week. I can't go to Gio's Deli. _After these thoughts went through her head, Betty tried to think of a way to persuade Daniel to get something to eat from some place else. Before she opened her mouththe telephone in Daniel's office rang. Betty waited patiently while Daniel was talking to someone else on the phone.

"Uh-huh, Some of the best that you have ever heard. Why, Thank You Mr. Preston. Well, you do, well I was going to eat something else…" Betty listened intently to this part of the phone conversation. "But I will take you up on that offer, and I will see you in fifteen minutes. Okay, Thank You again, Mr. Preston Bye." Daniel hung up the phone and looked at Betty with a pleased Grin on his face. "That was Miles Preston, he said that he liked our ideas so much that he wants to take us out to lunch to that new restaurant Park Place, it's five star and the food is supposed to be excellent."

Daniel went to the front of his office and gave Betty a hug. "Betty you're a genius, your plan worked and now we can get this photo shoot done on time and we even get a free meal out of it." Betty and Daniel ended their hug and Betty looked at Daniel with a relieved and happy look on her face. She was relieved that she didn't have to go to Gio's deli today. "That's great Daniel but is it okay if I stay here, I want to work on this paper that I'm writing for my writing class."

"You're still doing that?" Daniel went back to his desk and wrote something on a pad. "That's the class that Gio convinced you to take right?"

"Right the one that Gio convinced me to take." As these words came out of her mouth, Betty felt a little guilty. She thought back to when she had told Gio about wanting to be a writer and how a little while later he told her about a writing class that was being offered. Betty wasn't so sure if she wanted to take the class at first, but Gio had kept encouraging her to take the class, until she finally signed up. Betty enjoyed the class, it helped her improve as a writer and she enjoyed the assignments that she received. She had even read some of them to Gio, and had him give her constructive criticism. Gio had been pretty supportive of Betty's writing. Now she was trying to avoid him.

Betty felt guilty about this, but she tried to reason in her mind that this was for the best and for Henry's sake. _It really is for the best. _Betty talked to Daniel for a few more minutes, told him she would see him later and left the room.


	5. Chapter 5

-1**Chapter 5**

Amanda sat at her desk going through a box of chocolates. She really loved the truffles. _Whoever can make chocolate taste like cake is a genius. _She thought and popped another one in her mouth. She pushed the box aside when she saw Marc approaching her desk. He surveyed the scene, looking at the empty chocolate wrappers scattered around. "Valentine's Day come a few days early this year for you Mandy?" Marc leaned against her desk and put a hand on his face softly tapping the side of his face with his fingers. He looked into his friend's eyes.

"I celebrate Valentine's Day _everyday_, I think it should be named after me. We can call it Everyone drools over Amanda Day." She put the top on the box of chocolates. "So, Diva, didn't I see you already today, what brings you back to my sanctuary so soon?"

Marc gave a small sigh. "Oh, I don't know, I guess I'm just bored. Wilhemina is away spending quality time with Meeko at her school and of course I didn't want to tag along for _that. _So I came to see what you are up to."

He reached into the cup on her desk and started fiddling with her pens. "Hey, how's Papa Simmons, you never did tell me what you and him talked about."

Amanda pulled out a file and started filing her nails. "Oh, it was the typical I haven't known about you for twenty five years but I had to find out who you were so, I could learn more about myself, and my evil backstabbing Witch of a mother conversation. It went pretty well."

"And?" Marc leaned a little more against the desk.

"And what?"

Marc stood up and threw his hands in the air. "For the sake of Prada, Mandy, Your father is Gene Simmons, Gene flipping Simmons. Front men for one of the cheesiest yet well known bands of all time. Kiss was not only known for their music but for using paint on their faces. And sometimes their painted faces matched their clothes."

Amanda put the fingernail file on her desk and put both hands down, and gave Marc an icy stare. "My father's band is not _cheesy. _I listened to Rock And Roll All Night often when I was in high school. Usually it was after I skipped classes and in the cars of my boyfriends that were way too old for me."

"Okay, so we differ on how good their is music is. No biggie. But--are you going to start working on having a relationship with him? As far as I know you have at least a brother and a sister, and there are probably more illegitimate siblings out there. There is a whole clan of Simmons out there that you can get to know."

A thoughtful expression came over Amanda's face. "You're right. He is my father and it certainly couldn't hurt to get to know him more or that side of my family. Plus I bet a lot of really hot rock stars hang out at his place. Even if some of them are _ancient. _I think I should try to get to know him a lot better. He did give me his phone number and invited me to his house."

Marc gave Amanda a quick smile. "Great."

Amanda reached over to Marc, and put her hand on top of his. "Marc, I just want to thank you for being such a supportive friend, during this whole saga of finding out Fey Summers is my real mother, and trying to find out who my real dad is. I really appreciate all that you've done for me."

Marc smiled again. "Oh, Mandy what are friends for. You're about to make me tear up here. I rarely get to see you so darn sappy."

Amanda removed her hand from his. "It's nice to feel sappy sometimes--but now I feel like doing something _devious."_

An excited look came into Marc's eyes. "What do you have in mind Mandykins?"

The wheels started spinning in Amanda's head. "Who haven't we bothered in a while?" A name came to her fast. "I know Betty!"

Marc frowned a little. "Amanda we bother her like everyday, yesterday we made fun of that blue tent that she had on, today we were teasing her about that sandwich guy. Don't you think that we should harass someone _else_ for a change?"

Amanda pouted a little. "I know that we harass Betty a lot but it is just so much fun. Besides I don't consider telling her that she has feelings for turkey man harassment. It's the truth. I've seen the way they are together. I've seen the way that he looks at her. Heck, I even think her boyfriend Mr. Calculator has picked up on the vibe between them."

Marc nodded. "Yes, I have noticed the way that the sandwich guy has looked at her too, not that I have been paying a lot attention to Betty's affairs. I really only pay attention to her clothes, and the way that she handles things here at Mode. I can't say that I care too much about her personal life. If I want to see a soap opera that I don't understand I'd watch Telemundo."

Amanda suddenly perked up. "Let's order some sandwiches from Gio, so that we can get him over here, so that he can spend some time with her."

Marc gasped. "Woman have you gone mad, since when do _we _do nice things for _Betty_?"

"Oh, come on Marc it would be kind of fun. And we wouldn't be doing something that was _completely _nice for her. We could still add some devious aspects. Like instead of ordering a couple sandwiches from Gio, let's order thirty and charge it to her name. Sure it might make the sandwich guy angry when she doesn't pay up, but since she is the woman that he loves, he'll get over it. After he comes here and confronts Betty about going sandwich crazy, they'll make up and have some uncomfortable moments together. Wouldn't that be great?" A little smile came over Amanda's face.

"I guess." Marc said in an unsure manner. "I'm just surprised how you went from wanting to harass Betty to wanting to harass Betty _and_ do something nice for her at the same time in less than two minutes. But whatever."

Amanda looked slightly confused. "I have been having more soft moments lately, maybe it's because I found my father. Hmm." She paused for a moment pondering this thought. "Anyways you in on this plan or not, Marc?"

Marc considered it. "Okay, I'm in, I _am _bored." After he finished that statement Amanda grabbed a phone book and started to look for the phone number of Gio's deli.


	6. Chapter 6

-1Thanks for the reviews and comments, I really appreciate it.

**Chapter 6**

Betty sat at her computer reviewing her latest assignment. She was grateful for the extra time she would have to work on it today. Daniel was out with Miles and had said that he would be gone for a little over an hour, and Betty was thankful that she could use this extra time to work on her paper. Since this paper was going to be due for Valentine's Day, the theme was to create a love story.

_This is going to be a piece of cake, _Betty had thought when she was first given the assignment. Betty already knew who she would base her characters on in her story. She just hoped that it wouldn't be _too _obvious. In her story she had changed things around some but the concept was very true to life, it was a classic love story, with two people that truly loved each other and that despite all odds would end up together. And of course it was going to have a happy ending. _Unlike real life where the guy ends up leaving to go to Arizona to take care of his child that he had with that manipulative twit Char-. _

Betty sighed and stopped that thought. She had to quit doing this. It wasn't doing her any good. She had to face the harsh reality around her and deal with it. She had to face the facts. She knew that she loved Henry, in fact he was the first man that she had ever loved. She knew that she wanted to stay together, and she knew that probably wasn't going to happen. Henry was leaving in a little over two months, to go back home to Tucson and raise his daughter. Henry and Betty had talked about this a little bit before but it had been very difficult for her.

Of course she didn't let Henry know this. She didn't want to upset him and make him feel guilty. She just wanted to spend as much time as possible with the man that she loved before he left her life _Forever. _That word lingered in Betty's mind and she had an uneasy feeling in her stomach. She knew that she would have to hold it together, and that once Henry was gone she would have to find a way to move on. Betty put her fingers back on her keyboard and continued typing her story.

While she was typing she had come to a part of her story, where she needed to use her notes for. Betty had made some notes with ideas about things that she wanted to include in her story. She got up from her desk and went to the front of it where there was a stack of papers sitting. She started to go through them looking for her notes. She finally found them and grabbed them in her hand.

"Wow, I knew you were an eater, but thirty sandwiches, are you involved in a bet or something?" A familiar voice asked behind her. Betty turned around to speak to the person, who was standing a few feet away from her. She tensed up a little when she saw his face.

"Gio! What are, what are you doing here?" She asked hoping that she didn't look as nervous as she sounded. _Why is Gio here? I thought I had managed to avoid him today. Apparently not. _As this thought crossed her mind, the feeling of guilt came back over her. Betty tried to push it away.

Gio gave her a smile. _She looks good. _He thought. As usual she was dressed funky, but her outfit.., the way that it hugged her curves- was well… _nice_. Betty was very curvy, and Gio liked women with curves. Gio was willing to bet that Betty had a pretty nice body, even though she never showed it off.

Betty continued to look at Gio. He was dressed appropriately for the weather, in dark blue jeans, and a light grey sweater that fit him quite nicely. He was carrying a paper bag in one of his hands. He was staring at her, with a slight smile on his face, and had this look behind his dark brown eyes, a look that at the moment she wasn't able to recognize. They stared at each other for a few seconds longer and Betty broke the silence.

"So, what are you doing here?" She asked again. She quickly went behind her desk and sat at her computer, but this time she turned her chair to face him.

Gio gave her an inquiring look. "You mean you don't know?"

Betty gave him a confused look. She had no idea what he was talking about.

"Of course you don't know, I figured that _you _couldn't be behind it." He stepped a little closer to her desk and set the bag that he had brought with him on it.

"Behind what, Gio what are you talking about?" Now Betty was really confused.

Gio gave a small laugh. "A little while ago, someone called my deli, and placed an order for thirty chicken salad sandwiches. They said that they were placing the order for you."

Betty was flabbergasted. "What?! Oh, my gosh Gio, I never ordered… I wouldn't do something like that, who on earth would do…"

"Relax, Betty." Gio said in a calming manner. "I knew that you would never do something like that. Plus the order was for thirty chicken salad, sandwiches, half with just the chicken, and half with just the salad. I knew this person had to be foolish."

"Foolish, and mean." Betty sighed. She didn't know why she was surprised. This wasn't the first time that someone at Mode had a played a trick on her. It used to happen all the time when she first started working there.

Gio noticed the sad expression on her face and he felt compelled to make her feel better.

"Hey, not a big deal, Maybe whoever did this kind of cares about you. They obviously didn't want you to go hungry."

Betty smiled and laughed a little at his joke. She reached out and touched the bag that he had set on her desk. "So, what's in here?" She asked.

"Oh, that." Gio indicated to the bag with one hand. "That is just a _real_ chicken salad sandwich that I brought for you, made just the way you like it. Extra tomatoes, and all the ingredients in tact."

Betty smiled. It was thoughtful of Gio to bring the sandwich. She was hungry and hadn't managed to grab anything yet. She reached to the other side of her desk to get her purse. "Here, let me pay you."

Gio held up his hand. "Not necessary."

Betty gave him a questioning look. "Really?"

"Really."

"Thanks"

Betty opened up the bag, and took out the sandwich. She took a bite and while she was chewing, some thoughts went through her head. She had in the course of talking about the chicken sandwiches, forgot that she wasn't supposed to be spending time with Gio. But this incident wasn't her fault, how could it be? She didn't call Gio up, she had been trying to avoid him. This was definitely not her fault. it was the fault of the prankster who did this.

As she continued to eat her sandwich, she thought about what she had to do about this situation with Gio. She had to stop spending time with him, she had to do it for Henry's sake. Granted this current situation wasn't intentional, but Betty had to find a way to stay away from Gio. And the best way to do that was to tell him the truth. Betty continued to eat her sandwich, and decided that she was going to tell Gio, that she couldn't see him anymore after she finished eating.

Gio stared at Betty while she was eating. He noticed that she seemed to be lost in her own thoughts and wasn't paying any attention to him. _It's just as well _he thought. She was probably so busy with work, and thinking of her true love Egg Salad, that there was probably no room for him in her thoughts..

_How can anyone look so cute while they are eating. _Gio wondered silently to himself._ Wait a minute, how can I think of something so goofy? What is wrong with me, why am I noticing how Betty is eating? That's a whole new level of weird._

Betty finished eating her sandwich and threw the bag away. She turned herself to Gio, and took a deep breath preparing to tell him that they couldn't spend any more time together. But Gio spoke first.

"Hey, Betty, there is something I want to tell you." He looked a little excited.

For some reason, Betty felt even more nervous after Gio said this. "What is it, Gio?"

"Well," Gio reached into one of the pockets of his jeans and pulled out a folded piece of paper, and handed it to Betty.

"What's this?" Betty asked and unfolded the piece of paper. She saw that it was a flyer for that upscale new Dance Club _Champagne and Roses. _She also noticed that it had a stamp on the bottom of it that said VIP Guests and had a signature.

_"_It's our free pass to get into this new club." Gio began. "One of my regular customers is the owner of Champagne and Roses and she came in a few days ago, and wanted a big order of sandwiches for a party that she was having at the club. Well, she had lost her credit card. She had tried to call the club to see if she had left it there, but no one could find it. And she needed to have the sandwiches made right away."

Betty listened to Gio, nodding for him to continue. "Well, I decided to let her have the sandwiches and told her that she could pay me later. She did seem to be in a bind, and well… she was kind of foxy."

Betty rolled her eyes at the last part of Gio's statement. "Okay, so you gave _foxy_ lady some free sandwiches, and …"

"And she was so thankful that she told me that I could bring a few of my friends for one night and get into the club for free. She said that she would give us the VIP treatment, the best seats in the house so that we can watch one of the great bands that play there, and free drinks all night long."

Gio paused, looking at Betty to see her reaction. When she didn't say anything he continued talking. "Well, I was wondering if you wanted to come with me…"

A nervous feeling shot through Betty's stomach. She couldn't spend even _more _time with Gio, what would that do to Henry? Betty knew that she had to put an end to things now, she started to open her mouth to protest but Gio continued his sentence.

"And bring some of your friends along, you could bring Christina, Hilda, even…" Gio had a hard time getting the last name out, he felt like he was going to choke on it. "Even Egg Salad…uh. I mean Henry."

Betty sat in thought processing this last piece of information. It was nice of Gio to want to take her and her friends, including her boyfriend Henry to one of the nicest dance clubs around. But she knew it wouldn't work, Henry would be too uncomfortable. She looked at Gio, their eyes locking. She knew that he was waiting for her to say something, and she did. "Gio, that sounds really nice, but...I don't think that it is such a good idea."

Gio laughed. "Since when is free alcohol not a good idea."

Betty gave a little smile and grabbed a sticky note off her desk, she started to play with the corner of it. She didn't want to say what she was about to say but she had to get it over with. "I don't think that me and you and Henry hanging out together is such a good idea." _There_, she had finally spit it out. Now she looked up at Gio and waited for his reaction.

A confused look was plastered on his face. "How could us hanging out at a club for free not be a good idea?" He asked wanting to hear Betty's answer.

Betty sighed. She stopped playing with the sticky note. "Gio, I like hanging out with you and I would like to go to the club, but Henry, he doesn't think that you and I should be spending time together. It makes him uncomfortable and I don't think he really likes you that much." Betty was surprised at how blunt she was being.

Gio frowned and suddenly he understood. Henry didn't want him anywhere near Betty because Henry felt threatened by their relationship. _What a jerk. _Gio thought angrily. _This bozo is leaving Betty in two months to raise his ill conceived offspring with another woman and now he is trying to dictate Betty's life. What right does he have to tell her who she can and can not see? The loser is leaving. _Gio was a little surprised at how harsh his thoughts about Henry were.

Betty sat watching Gio. She could tell that he was thinking about what she said. She knew that he understood what she meant, and she knew that he wasn't happy about it. And she felt like there was nothing that she could do about it and that made _her _unhappy. "Gio I…"

Gio grabbed the flyer off her desk and put it back in his pocket. "You don't have to say anything. Apparently you let Egg Salad say it all." His harsh tone cut right through Betty.

"Just what do you mean by that?" She asked defensively.

"Come on Betty, apparently you let Eggy make all your decisions for you. He dictates who you can and can't see. He probably also chooses the movies that you watch, and the ice cream that you eat. Tell, me Betty does he like Cookie Dough? He looks like a Cookie Dough hater." Gio was steamed now.

Betty was starting to get angry herself. "You really don't know anything about Henry _or_ our relationship. He does _not_ make all my decisions for me, you have no right to judge him. And for the record he loves Cookie Dough Ice Cream. And so do I." She glared at Gio.

Gio laughed bitterly. "I know you do. And of course he likes Cookie Dough as well. What was I thinking? He has to. You two wouldn't work if you didn't have at least 10,000 things in common."

Betty was offended, even though she wasn't sure why she was offended. "Now, what the heck does _that _mean?"

_She really doesn't have a clue. _Gio thought."It means that one of the biggest reasons Henry loves you is because you're like his clone or something. You like the same movies, the same ice cream, the same musical productions. The same _everything."_

"So What." Betty stood up from her desk. She had become very irritated. She was angry at Gio, and was hurt about the things that he was saying about her and Henry. "So what if Henry and I have a lot in common, lots of happy couples do, a lot of couples that last do. And I am _not _his clone."

Gio frowned. He could tell that Betty was angry with him, and he could also detect a trace of hurt behind her eyes. He felt guilty. He hadn't meant to hurt her. He _never _wanted to hurt her. He just wanted her to open her eyes and see what was really going on.

"There is nothing wrong with having a lot of things in common with a person, it's just…" Gio was frantically searching his brain looking for the right words, to express himself. "There's nothing wrong with being with someone who you may not have _everything_ in common with but who challenges you and loves you for you. And not because you bend over backwards to give them everything that they want." Gio was shocked at what he had just said. Those words sounded so foreign coming out of his mouth. _Where the heck did that come from? _He wondered to himself._ I sound like Dr. Phil. Weird._

Betty was also surprised by what Gio had said and was for a few moments speechless. She wasn't quite sure what to say about Gio's speech about love. She thought she had a pretty good idea about love already. She did have it with Henry. She didn't care what Gio said about him, she knew that she loved Henry and that they were right together. _Maybe Gio should take his own advice about love and go find him someone, _she thought. _It's not bad advice, but he does sound like Dr. Phil._

At that moment Daniel came into the room and noticed that Gio and Betty were staring intently at each other. _What is going on here? _He wondered to himself. He started to make his way to his office, to leave them to whatever it was they were doing, but Betty saw him. "Daniel!" She called excitedly. "I want to hear all about your lunch with Miles." Daniel nodded and went into his office motioning her to follow him. Betty did want to hear how lunch went with Miles but she really wanted to get away from Gio. She had an explosion of feelings running through her after their conversation, and she didn't have time to sort them out right now. She also didn't know what else to say to Gio and the silence was uncomfortable.

Gio knew that Betty didn't want to talk to him any more, so he decided to leave. As he was turning to go, he looked back at Betty and said. "You don't have to worry, I won't bother you anymore. Anything to make Eggy happy." And with that he left feeling very defeated, with Betty looking behind him. The guilty feeling returned to Betty as she watched him walk away, and this time it was stronger than ever. Once again, she tried to push it aside, and went in Daniel's office to talk about his lunch with Miles.


	7. Chapter 7

-1Thanks for the review and comments.

**Chapter 7**

Betty came home and went into the living room. Justin was watching one of the fashion make over shows that he enjoyed watching.

"Hi Justin". Betty greeted her nephew.

"Hi, Aunt Betty." Justin responded. He gasped. "Oh, my gosh what on earth is Jennifer wearing? Look at her wardrobe. What's with all the tube socks and flip flops ? Yikes. Steven and Jodi definitely have their work cut out for them on this one."

Betty laughed and went over to the couch and put her purse down. "Hey, Justin where are Hilda and dad?"

"Mom is working on one last customer in the kitchen and Grandpa is out buying some groceries." Justin replied, his eyes never leaving the TV and Jennifer's hideous wardrobe.

Betty sat down to rest and closed her eyes. She was thankful that the week was over.

Everything had went okay with Miles, and Daniel had said that she didn't have to come in Sunday for the photo shoot. Betty was thankful, even though things had worked out with Miles, she was glad that she didn't have to see him again. She had a free weekend and she knew exactly who she wanted to spend it with. _Henry. _A smile came to her face when his name appeared in her mind. Betty hadn't been able to spend much time with Henry this week, he had come over for dinner once and she had called him a few times, but that was it. She missed him.

Yes, Betty was definitely going to spend time with the man that she loved this weekend and she started thinking of things that they could do. Maybe they could go see 27 Dresses, she was sure that it was still playing at the movie theatre. She had loved that book and had planned to see the movie when she got the chance. She knew that Henry wouldn't mind going to see it with her. He actually liked romantic comedies, they had watched quite a few on some of their movie nights. It had been a lot of fun. Betty's smile widened . That is one of the things that she loved about Henry. He liked a lot of the same things that she did and they rarely disagreed over anything.

Betty was grateful to have a man that was so in synch with her. Someone who actually loved romantic comedies, who liked going to the museums on Saturday just to learn something new, someone who loved hot fudge sundaes, someone who loved musical productions, including one of her favorites Wicked. Henry was great. He was almost perfect and that made him perfect for _her. _They fit together, he was her Prince Charming and she was like his…

_You're like his clone or something. _Those words came flying through Betty's head and she snapped her eyes open. Ugh, why was she thinking of what Gio said. What did he really know about Henry and her and Henry's relationship? The only things that he really knew was that Henry was an accountant and that he liked Egg Salad sandwiches. The last little tid bit of information is what prompted Gio to sometimes give Henry the unflattering nicknames of "Egg Salad" or "Eggy." Even though Betty had thought that he would stop doing that since he promised her that he would. However, she remembered hearing him saying it multiple times today, when she told him that she couldn't see him anymore. Betty sighed when she thought of Gio's reaction today to her decision. Gio had looked so angry and hurt when she told him that she couldn't spend any more time with him.

Betty hadn't meant to hurt Gio. He was her friend, and she did enjoy spending time with him. Gio was fun and adventurous and Betty liked that. He also had a way of making her laugh, even when she wasn't in the mood and sometimes he would make her laugh at her own behavior. Gio was definitely okay in Betty's book and she liked when they hung out. But she knew it made Henry uncomfortable and she didn't want that. Henry was the man that she loved and he was leaving in a little over two months to go to Arizona and raise his daughter.

Betty felt the little time that she and Henry had left together was slipping away, and she wanted to make the most out of the last couple of months that they had together. That meant doing some of the things that they hadn't gotten a chance to do, and that meant having as many happy and joyful moments as they could. They couldn't really do that if Henry was uncomfortable and worried about her relationship with Gio. That is why Betty couldn't spend any more time with him. She had to do it for the sake of her relationship. She knew that Gio wouldn't understand and that she couldn't expect him to and that made her feel bad but there wasn't much that she could do about it.

At that moment Hilda and an older woman in her 40's came into the living room. The older woman had just had her hair styled by Hilda, and it looked quite lovely. Hilda had given her layers and a new color and the woman looked very content with her style.

"Alright, Ms. Martinez I will see you in a few weeks. Go knock that man that you are seeing dead tonight."

"Thanks honey I will." The woman responded smiling at Hilda. "Jeffrey is taking me out to dinner and then to that new dance club Champagne and Roses. I hear that it is a really nice club and that they have great entertainment."

"Oh, yeah." Hilda smiled after the women mentioned the club. "I heard that the club is really nice, and pretty upscale for a dance club. Seems like you got yourself a spender. You go lady."

"Thanks Hilda, I hope we have a good time tonight. I will see you in a few weeks. Bye."

"Bye Ms. Martinez." Hilda walked the woman to the door, watched her leave and came back into the living room. She noticed her sister sitting down, with one of her 'I am in deep thought' kind of looks.

"Hi, Betty." Hilda went over to stand near her sister. "Hello, earth to Betty, are you here?"

"Oh, Hilda!" Betty exclaimed snapping out of her thoughts. "I didn't notice you standing there."

"Hmm, I see that. It looks like you were in deep thought or something, is everything okay?"

"Everything's fine." Betty said. She started playing with the ends of her coat.

"Are you sure?" Hilda asked giving her sister a look of concern. She could always tell when something was bothering Betty.

"Yeah, Hilda, everything's fine. But, did I just hear that lady say that she was going to that new club Champagne and Roses?"

"Yeah." Hilda sighed. "What I wouldn't do to get into that place. I hear it's really pricey but it is supposed to be one of the best clubs around."

Suddenly an idea popped into Betty's head. One that might make Gio feel better about not being able to spend time with her, and one that might give her the answer to a question that she had been wondering.

"Hey Hilda. What would you say if I could get you into that club for free, you and a couple of your friends?"

"I would say that I have the best sister ever." Hilda remarked excitedly and sat down next to Betty. "You can get me into Champagne and Roses for free. How? Through your connections from Mode?"

"No, actually." Betty turned so that she could face her sister. "Through Gio."

"_Gio_?" Hilda questioned. "How can Gio get me into Champagne and Roses for free?"

Betty then told her sister the story that Gio had told her about the owner and the free sandwiches and how he had offered to get them into the upscale dance club.

"Wow, Betty". Hilda smiled. "That was sweet of Gio, but why can't you go with us?"

Betty began to shift a little on the couch. Hilda noticed this. "Um, well, I… you see it's Henry."

"Henry?"

"Yeah, Henry". Betty stopped shifting and looked directly at her sister. "Henry doesn't like me and Gio spending time together. It's makes him uncomfortable and I promised him that I wouldn't see Gio anymore."

"What?!" Hilda exclaimed in a loud voice, she quickly quieted down. "Oh, Betty you should not have done that."

Betty gave her sister a pleading look. She wanted Hilda to understand why she had wanted to keep her promise to Henry.

"Hilda, I want Henry to be happy. I want _us_ to be happy. We have so little time left together, I don't want there to be any friction between us in our last couple of months together. My friendship with Gio causes friction."

_I'll bet it does. _Hilda thought to herself.

She put her hand on Betty's shoulder. "Okay, I get that you want to make Henry happy, I've been in love before, that person is your whole world, and you would do anything to please them. I remember after I fell in love with Santos…" her voice drifted off and a nostalgic look come into her eyes. She was quiet for a moment reflecting on her love with Santos.

Betty looked at her sister. She knew that Hilda missed Santos and was still hurting from his death. Hilda had tried to be strong for Justin, but Betty knew that she was going through a lot of pain. Betty wished that she could take her sister's pain away.

"Hilda, are you okay?" She asked softly. She reached out and put her hand on her sister's.

"Yeah, I'm okay, it's just that I was thinking about Santos."

Betty nodded in understanding.

"Betty…" Hilda continued, giving her sister a serious look. "There is nothing wrong with making Henry happy but you have to look at the big picture here. He's leaving in two months and he is asking you to cut off one of your friends. Are you sure that you want to do that?"

"Well, it's not like me and _Gio_ are _best _friends, I didn't even like him the first time that we met. Sure he's grown on me, but I don't want to risk my relationship with Henry because of my friendship with Gio."

Hilda gave her sister a thoughtful look. "Why can't you have both, a relationship with Henry _and_ a friendship with Gio? I mean isn't that what you had before you promised Henry that you wouldn't see Gio anymore?"

Betty thought about her sister's question. "I did, and it was great, but I don't want to…"

"You don't want to what, Betty?"

"I don't want to lose Henry over this."

Hilda sighed. She knew that her sister was facing some hard truths right now and would face even more hard truths in the next couple of months. "Betty," She said softly. "You _are_ going to lose Henry."

Those words hit Betty like a punch to the heart. And it hurt. It hurt so badly. Hilda was right, she _was_ going to lose Henry in a couple of months and there wasn't anything that she could do about it.

A tear slid down Betty's cheek. She tried to wipe it away.

"Oh, Betty." Hilda embraced her sister. "I know that it hurts. And that it's going to get tough but I will be here, we all will."

"Thanks Hilda." They held onto each other for a few seconds longer, before ending their hug. "So do you kind of see why I want to spend every available moment with Henry in peace and happiness. I'm going to lose him and that is why I want our remaining time together to be special. I don't want to spend it with him while he is worrying about a friendship with one of my guy friends. Well, my only guy friend besides Daniel."

Hilda nodded. She understood where her sister was coming from. But she still felt like she was making a mistake. Partly because she didn't think that Henry should be telling her who she couldn't see and partly because she had some insight into this situation that her sister didn't have. Hilda knew that Gio had feelings for Betty. She could tell that he did the night that they went dancing with Betty and Henry and she caught him stealing glances at her sister. Hilda noticed how Gio had stepped up his game when Henry and Betty had arrived at the club, and saw the look he gave her when they left. When Gio had taken her home that night, Hilda had told him that she "wasn't the sister that he liked" and had bid him farewell.

Hilda liked Gio, she thought he was a good guy. He was intelligent, funny, ambitious, he had a lot of great qualities. She wouldn't have minded dating him, but she knew that he didn't like her, at least not the way that he liked Betty. And Hilda knew that Betty was oblivious to this. She was so wrapped up in Henry and her love for him that she couldn't see what was right in front of her face. That Gio had feelings for her.

Hilda, knew that Betty had no idea about Gio's feelings, she didn't even think Gio knew the depth of his feelings for Betty. He did look kind of perplexed when she suggested that he liked Betty. Hilda didn't know what might end up happening between Gio and Betty but she knew that like in this situation with Henry, she would be there for her sister. No matter what.

Betty smiled at her sister, her eyes still a little misty. "So, Hilda, did you want to go to Champagne and Roses, you could go with Gio, it might be a little awkward since he and I aren't hanging out anymore, but you do like him right? You guys seemed like you had fun the last time you went out together. How come you haven't been out on anymore dates with him?"

_Uh-oh. _Hilda racked her brain for something that she could tell her sister that sounded believable. "It just didn't work out, Betty I don't think that I am his type. You know how it is. In fact I think that he has feelings for someone else." _Darn_. Hilda wish that she hadn't said that last sentence.

"Really?" Betty was curious now. " I had no idea that Gio has feelings for someone else, he has never mentioned anything to me, I don't think that he is even seeing someone." Betty didn't know why all of a sudden she was interested in Gio's love life but she was.

"Uh… it's really nothing you know how men are." Hilda waved her hands trying to dismiss what she had said about Gio having feelings for someone else.

"So, Betty, why I would love to go to Champagne and Roses, I think that it would be too awkward to go with Gio. Now that you two aren't hanging out together any more, and he and I didn't work out. Maybe I will go some other time." Hilda gave her sister a smile, but deep down she was disappointed that she couldn't go to the dance club, she had heard a lot of great things about it, and she had wanted to check it out for herself.

"Maybe some other time."

Betty nodded accepting her sister's answer.

At that moment Ignacio came through the front door, with a few bags of groceries in his hands.

"Justin go help your grandpa." Hilda commanded but Justin was nowhere in the room. The television was also shut off. Justin sensing that his aunt and mother needed to talk had slipped out of the room earlier.

"Justin!" Hilda called.

"Okay, Okay, I'm coming." Justin came back into the room and grabbed a bag from Ignacio, Hilda stood up walked over to him and grabbed another. Ignacio now with only one bag started to follow them to the kitchen. He noticed Betty sitting on the couch, her eyes were a little red.

"Are you okay, hija?" He asked in a concerned tone.

"Yes, dad, I'm fine. It's been a long week."

Ignacio nodded. "Well, I'm going to make chicken chimichangas tonight. I know how much you love my chimichangas. Maybe that will make you feel better."

Betty grinned. "Dad, I love almost everything that you cook you know that."

Ignacio gave her a wink. "I love hearing you say that. A cook can never get too many compliments." He took the bag into the kitchen and got ready to cook dinner.

Betty knew that it would be a while before dinner was ready and she decided to go lay down for a bit. She went upstairs to her room.


	8. Chapter 8

-1Thanks for the review and comments.

**Chapter 8**

" Here you go, one ham and cheddar sandwich, with extra mustard and sauerkraut." Gio handed the customer their sandwich, an old man in his seventies, rang him up and gave him back his change. It was right after the usual lunch rush, and Gio had some customers in his deli. The atmosphere was peaceful, their was a little chatter among the customers dining in, but most of them were too busy enjoying their sandwiches to waste time talking.

Gio surveyed the scene and made sure that every customer was okay and that no one wanted chips or needed something to drink. After looking over everything, and seeing that business had slowed down Gio decided to take a break. He put Jake on the register and he went to the back to his little office. Gio sat down and ran his hands through his hair. This week so far had been pretty good business wise, there had been an increase in the sales for bowls of soup. Gio figured that was because of the weather it was still pretty chilly outside and customers just probably wanted something to warm them up. The week so far had started out good business wise, Gio just wish it had been a little better personally.

It had been five days since Betty told him that she no longer wanted him to be apart of her life. Five days that had felt like five weeks. Gio had tried not to let it get to him. She was after all just a girl. Granted they had become friends, but now they wouldn't be anymore and Gio could handle that. At least he thought that he could. But as hard as he tried not to think about Betty or what it meant to lose her as a friend, she still managed to find a way to invade his mind. He found himself thinking about her and not just a little. But a _lot. _

He thought about not seeing her again, at Mode seeing her handle some of the jerks that worked there, including that mean but kind of hot blonde receptionist Amanda, and her male friend Marc, the guy with all the pastel jackets. He thought about missing out on her laugh when he said something funny, seeing her roll her eyes when he said something inappropriate, and missing the way that she laughed and rolled her eyes when he said something that was funny and inappropriate. Gio thought about missing when she would throw an idea at him for one of her writing assignments and the look that she would get in her eyes, when she had done something to save Mode from going under. Gio thought about all the things that he would miss about Betty, her smile, her laugh, her determination and some of her other qualities and he felt bummed. He had no idea that he was going to miss her this much. And it had only been five days since he last saw her.

"He's right back here ma'am." Gio could hear Jason instructing someone to his office. Gio sat up, his face breaking into a smile when he saw who it was.

"Aunt Taddea." Gio went over to greet his aunt.

"Giovanni!" Gio felt himself instantly being pulled into his aunt's arms, and kissed three times. Once on each cheek and once on the nose, for good luck as his aunt claimed. Gio loved his Aunt Taddea very much, out of his aunts on both his mother and father's side she was his favorite. She was very kind, sweet, compassionate and vivacious. She had the power as his Uncle Antonio often claimed to "cheer up the devil."

"So, Aunt Taddea what brings you here?" Giovanni asked pulling out the other chair in his office so that she could sit down.

"Oh, Giovanni, it's your Uncle Antonio." His aunt had a worried expression on her face.

Gio leaned forward. "What's wrong Aunt Taddea? Is Uncle Antonio all right? I just saw him this morning and he seemed fine."

"Oh, he's fine physically but his spirit, his spirit seems kind of broken."

She paused looking at Gio with a hint of sadness in her eyes.

"He's been like this ever since your cousin Cosmio decided to skip college and try to become some rock star."

Gio nodded and understood why his aunt was so upset. His cousin Cosmio was a pretty intelligent kid, had gotten straight A's all throughout his years in school, had gotten over a 1500 on the SAT's and had received a full scholarship to go to Syracuse University. He was the pride and joy of Antonio and Taddea and they were so excited when they heard about the scholarship from Syracuse. They felt that their son was going to get a good education and do great things in the world.

However, Cosmio had other ideas. Cosmio loved music, mainly Rock. He was a good singer, and a pretty decent musician, he had started playing in bands in middle school. He had often said that he had dreams of becoming a rock star, but his parents had never really taken him seriously on that subject. That felt that he was a very bright kid and that college was the best place for him. However, last summer a couple of months after Cosmio turned 18, and after he had an argument with Antonio about not wanting to go to Syracuse, he packed up his bags, left his parents a note telling them that he was going to pursue his dreams of becoming a rock star, and not to worry about him and left.

He had stated in the letter that he was going to be staying with a friend, until his music career kicked in full gear. He had cleaned out his savings account, with all the money that he had saved that came from his parents, and other relatives, and the money that he had saved from his part-time job and took it with him. He was ready to pursue the life that he wanted as a musician.

Antonio and Taddea were furious, hurt and disappointed that their son had decided not to go to college and had just taken off to pursue some dream that they felt probably wouldn't even work out. At first they had thought about tracking Cosmio down, and dragging him by his "hard headed ears" back to New York and forcing him to go to college. But after thinking about it, they realized that it was no use. Their son was 18, he had left home, and had decided to go after a different dream than the one that they had wanted for him, and there was really nothing that they could do about it. So, they had decided to leave him be, except to call him to make sure that he was okay, and let him know that if he ever wanted to come back, that they would be there for him. But his choice still stung them, and at times like now during his conversation with his Aunt Taddea, Gio could see just how much it hurt them.

"Hey." Gio took his Aunt Taddea's hands in his own. "I know that what Cosmio did bothers you and Uncle Antonio, but he is an adult now and he made his choice. There may be consequences for it, but he knows who his family is, he knows where his home is, and he knows that you and Antonio would be there for him at the drop of a hat if he needed you. I think that for now you guys just have to let him do his thing and hope that it works out for the best, even if it's not likely that it will."

His aunt nodded. She still had a hint of sadness behind her eyes. But she smiled and tried to shake it off. "Cosmio did call us yesterday to let us know that he was alive, so I take that as a good sign. But I do hope that he is not starving. I offered to send him money if he was, but he turned me down, and said that he is doing fine and that he can make it on his own. At least he called."

Gio nodded and gave his aunt a smile. "Yeah, at least he called to let you know that he is okay. Cosmio may be impulsive, but he is not short on common sense, how can he be with parents like you and Antonio?"

"Oh, Giovanni, you are very much like your grandfather, a charmer." Aunt Taddea pinched his cheek.

Gio laughed. "Aunt Taddea".

Taddea gave her nephew a grin. "So, I have been rambling on to you with my problems, but what's going on in your life, nipote? Do you have any run away teenage sons that you want to talk about?" She joked. "Or any other problems, or.. oooh…" An excited look came on Taddea's face. "Are you seeing someone? Sooner or later you are going to want to settle down Giovanni, and it's not too soon to start looking."

Betty's face flashed through Gio's mind. "No, uh… actually there is really no one right now." Gio had no idea why Betty's face had come to his mind, he wasn't seeing her, in fact she had removed him from her life. Besides she wasn't with him in the first place, she was with Eggy. Not that she would have necessarily been with him if she _wasn't_ with Eggy, but… wait a minute did he want her to be with him? Why the heck was he thinking…

Taddea sat and watched her nephew. He appeared to be in deep concentration, like he was trying to figure something out.

"Giovanni is everything okay?"

Gio released himself from his thoughts for a moment. "Yes, yes, everything is fine Aunt Taddea."

"Hmm, Okay… and you don't have anyone special in your life?" She prodded again, this time very slyly.

"No, no.. no one." Gio was back to looking like he was in a trance.

"Nipote, you're lying."

"What!?" Gio was shocked by his Aunt's declaration. "I'm not lying Aunt Taddea, I'm not seeing anyone special."

Taddea gave Gio a look. "But you're thinking of someone that is special to you, someone that you would like to see?"

Gio shook his head. "No, uh.."

His Aunt Taddea put her hand up to silence him. "Of course you are. I've raised a son, I've seen that look before. It's the I think I'm in love look. Cosmio had it every other week when he was in high school. But since you are older and much more mature than he is perhaps your look is based on something more real, and not on whichever cheerleader you have the hots for this week."

Gio was surprised by his aunt's statement. He wasn't quite sure what to say.

Taddea looked at her nephew a little more closely, she looked at his expression, and the looks of anguish and confusion behind his dark brown eyes.

"Or maybe I am a little wrong…"

_You have to be. I don't think that I am in love with… I can't think that I am in love with_**… **As these thoughts sailed through Gio's mind he was even more baffled.

"You seem like you _do_ feel the real thing. I can see it in your eyes. Giovanni… you're in _love_."

Her words hit Gio like a ton of bricks, he felt like he was being weighed down and there was no way that he could pick himself up. He felt his face grow warm.

"Aww, Giovanni, you're blushing, quick don't turn into a tomato!" His aunt's laughter traveled throughout the room, Taddea had a loud laugh, one that could reach all four corners of a room, however that laugh could not drown out the pounding of Gio's heart.

"So, who is she, who is the woman that has stolen my Giovanni's heart?"

Gio was beyond embarrassed now, he wanted to put a stop to this conversation as soon as possible.

"Uh, no one." He knew that his response was lame, but he didn't really know what else to say.

"_Giovanni.." _Taddea shook her head. "Okay so you don't want to tell me who she is. Why is that? Is it because something is wrong with her? Is she an escaped convict? I do remember seeing on the news about the three woman that escaped from…"

"No, she is not an escaped convict." Gio stated quickly. He wanted to put an end to this conversation, _now._

His Aunt Taddea smiled brightly with a look of satisfaction in her eyes. "So, you admit it then. So if she is not an escaped convict, then is she spoken for, betrothed? Is that why you don't want to tell me who she is, does she belong to someone else?" She gave him an inquiring look.

Gio took a breath and took in his Aunt Taddea's questions. He laughed nervously. "Spoken for, _betrothed? _Aunt Taddea, I didn't know that we were living in the middle ages."

She slapped his knee playfully. "You know what I mean."

At that moment Jason came in. "Hey Gio, I'm sorry to interrupt but one of the businesses called and they wanted to order twenty-five sandwiches."

Gio decided to take this opportunity to get his aunt to stop asking him so many questions.

"Well, Aunt Taddea, I have to get back to work now. But I will talk to you later, and tell Uncle Antonio that I will come by this weekend and we can go out for a couple of beers."

Taddea rose out of the chair. "Okay, Giovanni but don't think that we are through with this conversation. Because we are not." She gave him a hug and a wink and left his office.

Gio breathed a sigh of relief when she left. He loved his Aunt Taddea, but this was one of the very few times that he was actually glad to see her go. Her observations had struck a nerve with him, and opened his eyes to things that he hadn't really thought about before. Gio wondered to himself. Could he really be in love with… nah. He couldn't be. He wasn't sure if he could even entertain that thought. At least not yet. Gio tried to push the things that his Aunt Taddea had said to the back of his mind. He left his office and went back out front and started to make sandwiches with Jason.


	9. Chapter 9

-1**Chapter 9**

Betty handed in her paper with a feeling of satisfaction. She had finally gotten it done after weeks of hard work. As Betty was leaving the classroom, her phone rang. She looked at the name that appeared. It was Henry. A smile came to Betty's face as she picked up the phone. "Hi, Henry."

"How is my lady love doing today?" The cheerful accountant's voice came through the phone, as pleasant as a kiss to her cheek.

Betty smiled. She loved the sound of Henry's voice. It always made her day better no matter how it was going. And today it sounded even sweeter than usual.

"I'm fine Henry and Happy Valentine's Day!" Betty could hardly contain the excitement in her voice, she was so happy. Today was her and Henry's first Valentine's Day as a couple.

"Happy Valentine's Day, Betty. So… we still on for later this evening? I have a surprise for you… well actually a few surprises. I wouldn't want you to miss out on what I have in store for you." Henry hinted very slyly.

Betty giggled. She loved it when Henry tried to be mysterious.

"Of course I am going to be there, and who knows maybe I will have a surprise for you myself."

Henry laughed. "All right then _Ms. Suarez, _I have to go right now, but I will see you at eight. I love you."

"Okay, see you at eight Henry. I love you too. Bye." Betty hung up feeling incredibly happy. She loved Henry so much. She couldn't wait to see what surprises that he had in store for her. Since today was going to be their first Valentine's Day together and probably their last Betty wanted to make it as special as possible.

A few weeks before she had went out and bought a lovely red mock wrap dress. When Betty first saw the dress she fell in love with it. It was a dress that looked like it flowed, was a light shade of red, short sleeved, and was very long, it was about ankle length. The dress had a small V shaped neckline but showed no cleavage even though Hilda had tried to persuade Betty to buy a dress that did show some, but Betty didn't want to. She had found the dress that she wanted. Betty had also purchased some red shoes for the occasion and she was going to borrow one of Hilda's necklaces. Betty rarely dressed up, but she wanted to for Valentine's Day this year and that was because of Henry.

Betty walked down the street elated. She couldn't wait until she got home and started to get ready for her date with Henry. Betty knew that tonight was going to be special and filled with all sorts of surprises.

Back at Mode Daniel was settling in his office. He knew that it was going to be a long evening and without Betty around it was going to be even longer. Daniel had a lot of work to do. He was going to be planning an upcoming fashion show that Mode was going to host. Normally he would have asked Betty to stay a few more hours. But not tonight. He knew that it was Valentine's Day and that Betty wanted to spend the evening with the man that she loved Henry. Daniel knew that this meant a lot to Betty. This would be her first and probably _last _Valentine's Day with Henry and that this day was both wonderful and bittersweet for her. To spend this day with Henry meant so much to Betty.

Daniel had liked Henry. When he first suspected that he had feelings for Betty and that possibly she returned those feelings he was happy for his assistant. Betty had by that time become his friend and he was pleased that she was interested in someone like Henry. He seemed like a pretty nice person, he was a good accountant and he seemed to genuinely care about Betty. Daniel thought that Betty deserved happiness in her life and he was all for Henry and Betty.

However his feelings started to change once he found out that Henry had gotten his ex-girlfriend pregnant and that he would be leaving Betty in a few months to go back to Arizona to raise his child. Daniel had thought that Betty should have broken up with Henry after that, and tried to convince her that it wasn't a good idea to stay involved with him, but Betty hadn't listened to him. She had still continued to see Henry, at first secretly. Daniel remembered when she had gotten the sandwich guy Gio to pretend to be her boyfriend. They had went to see the production of Wicked with the tickets he had given them. Everything had seemed to be going along fine, Gio had seemed like an okay guy and Daniel was glad that Betty seemed to be moving along with her life.

But, he found out he had been wrong when her and Henry had appeared on stage together. Daniel had figured out the truth. Betty had lied to him and was still seeing Henry. Daniel had been pretty angry with Betty for lying and also for setting herself up to be hurt. He had told her that she was doing something stupid, and Daniel had remembered the look on her face, that look of hurt, making him regret what he had said, even though he still had pretty strong feelings about it.

Some time after that Daniel and Betty had made up and he had decided that he was going to stay out of her relationship with Henry. It was her life and it was her decision to decide how she would live it. Daniel just knew that once Henry left and broke Betty's heart he would be there as a friend and a sympathetic ear if she needed someone to talk to. He knew that they all would be there, her family, Christina, even the sandwich guy Gio. Daniel had noticed the way that Gio was looking at Betty after she had hugged him a little while ago. Daniel had wondered if it was possible if Gio had feelings for Betty. He thought it would be quite interesting if he did. But nonetheless Daniel had decided to stay out of that too, because once again it was Betty's life that was at stake and Daniel didn't want to cause any interference.

Daniel's stomach growled. He was pretty hungry and he started to think about what he wanted to eat for dinner. Gio's Reuben sandwiches came to mind. He had wanted to get some last week but Miles invited him out to lunch and he didn't get a chance to get any sandwiches. Daniel picked up his phone and dialed the number to Gio's Deli.

Back at the Suarez household Betty was almost ready for her date with Henry. Hilda had fixed her hair, she had put several curls throughout it, and she had applied Betty's make-up. Betty had already had on her dress. Betty looked at herself in the mirror. She felt that she had never looked so good before. She felt beautiful, and had enjoyed the admiring looks and compliments that her family members had given her. She just hoped that Henry would be pleased with the way that she looked.

Betty picked up her purse and went into the living room to wait for Henry.

" Betty you look great." Hilda proudly stated coming into the living room and sitting on the couch beside her. "Are you sure that you don't want to wear some contacts? I have some if you want to use them."

"No thanks Hilda, I don't want to put those things in my eyes, I feel like I might poke my eyes out or something."

Hilda laughed. "Okay, Betty whatever you say." Her and Betty sat patiently, waiting for Henry to arrive.

A little while later the doorbell rang. "It's Henry!" Betty squealed realizing that she almost sounded like a love sick teenage girl. But she didn't care. She was so happy that Henry had arrived. Hilda went to answer the door. Henry stepped in wearing a nice suit and had a bouquet of roses and a box of chocolates in his hands. He smiled at Hilda He stepped into the living room and gasped when he saw Betty. She looked amazing. Well, to him she always looked amazing but this time even more so than usual. He loved the way that her dress fit her. She was lovely to him, and it took his breath away. Henry went over to her. Betty smiled at him shyly.

"Hi, Henry."

"Hi, Betty. Wow… you look _amazing___ Here." He gave her the roses and candy. Betty smiled at him and took his gifts.

"Thanks." She leaned forward to kiss him and there lips met. It was a soft, sweet kiss, the type of kiss that made Betty feel safe, secure and comfortable. Betty enjoyed the kiss, and Henry's breath smelled like peppermint. Her lips lingered on his for a few seconds longer and she stepped back. There would be more time for kisses and such later, but right now she wanted to get a move on and go see what type of surprises that Henry had for her.

"Are you ready to go?" Henry asked grabbing a hold of her hand.

"Yes". Betty said in anticipation and grabbed her purse. At that moment her cell phone rang.

"I wonder who could be calling me right now." Betty wondered and reached inside her purse to grab her phone, the name that came up was Daniel. _It must be something important _Betty thought. _I should probably take this._

"Excuse me, Henry it's Daniel, I am going to see what he wants real quick."

"Hello, Daniel, is everything okay?" Betty listened to Daniel on the other end of the phone while he mentioned his dilemma.

"Sure, I have that notebook, I accidentally took it today, I know that it has all our ideas in it for the fashion shoot, and I was going to bring it in tomorrow. Um-hmm. It does have all the numbers for our important contacts in it. You need it right now? But Daniel I was getting ready to go on my date with Henry."

Henry was looking on in curiosity as Betty continued her phone conversation with Daniel.

"Oh, come on Daniel you can't remember _any_ of the ideas that we came up with? And you need to call some of our contacts for the fashion show _tonight_? _Daniel._"Betty was a little frustrated.

"Well, maybe I could do that but let me ask Henry."

Betty put her phone down for a second and looked at Henry with an apologetic look on her face. "Daniel says that he needs a notebook that I took home today with all our information and plans in it for this upcoming fashion show that we are doing. He is working late at Mode tonight trying to plan this show and he was wondering if I could drop the notebook off really quick before we go on our date."

Henry nodded taking in what Betty was saying. "Okay, I think that we can do that." He was a little disappointed that they wouldn't be starting their date right away but he knew that Betty's work was pretty important to her and that she was always trying to be the best assistant to Daniel that she could. Henry admired how hard Betty worked to help things at Mode run smoothly.

"Thanks Henry. You're the best." Betty came over and gave him a quick kiss on the lips.

"Okay, Daniel, we'll be there in a little bit, I am going to run in and give the notebook to you. Okay, You're Welcome Daniel. Bye."

Betty hung up and turned to Henry with a smile on her face. "Thanks for being willing to do this Henry. The quicker we get this notebook to Daniel, the quicker we can start our date and see what surprises you have in store for me. I am going to go get the notebook." Betty ran upstairs, got the notebook, came down and grabbed Henry's hand. "Let's get a move on." Betty and Henry said their good-byes to Hilda and went to Mode to take Daniel the notebook before they started their date.


	10. Chapter 10

-1**Chapter 10**

Gio entered Mode and looked around. Most of the floor was dark and there was hardly anyone around. A couple of people were working in some of the cubicles, and there were a few custodians working doing some late evening cleaning. Other than that it was almost empty. Gio made his way to Daniel Meade's office, with a bag that had two Reuben sandwiches in it. Gio was surprised that Daniel had called this late in the evening, he normally had someone else call in at lunch if he wanted a sandwich. It was usually Betty.

As her name flashed through his mind, Gio wondered what she was doing tonight. He figured that she was probably celebrating Valentine's Day with Egg Salad, they were probably at home eating red and pink ice creams and watching some type of sappy Valentine's Day movie. That seemed right up Eggy's alley. _Oh well. _Gio thought. There was no use thinking about Betty. She probably wasn't thinking about him. She was probably where she wanted to be right with her beloved Egg Salad.

Gio arrived outside of Daniel's Office and lightly knocked on the door. Daniel looked away from his computer and looked up, smiling at Gio and motioned for him to come in. Gio opened the door and stepped inside.

"Hey Gio." Daniel greeted him. "I see you brought my sandwiches."

"Yup." Gio stated holding up the bag. "Two Reuben's with extra mayo."

"Yes!" Daniel exclaimed excitedly. He toned down his voice. "I mean you make _really_ good sandwiches, I love your Reuben's. Let me get your money." Daniel felt inside his pockets for his wallet. He didn't feel it. "Hmm.. I know I have my wallet around here some place." As Daniel started looking for his wallet in his desk drawers. Gio thought he heard something. He turned around just as someone came running into Daniel's office, crashing into him, knocking him off of his feet and falling right on top of him.

"Whoa!" Gio said looking up to see who had fell on top of him. He was surprised at who it was.

"Ow." Betty said. She looked at Gio in surprise.

Gio stared at Betty. She looked incredible. Her hair had lots of curls in it, she had on make-up and was wearing a lovely red dress. Gio could only see the top of it because she was laying on him, but he could feel the soft material draped over his legs.

"Gio!" Betty exclaimed. Her hands were pressed on his chest, it was almost as if she was trying not to fall off of him.

Gio couldn't help but smile. _This is nice. _He thought.

"What are you doing here?" Betty asked. She still hadn't moved from laying on top of him.

Gio wasn't going to move if she wasn't going to. " Well, I came to deliver some sandwiches to your boss. That is what I was doing, until you decided to come in here in all of your red glory and fall on top of me."

Betty blushed. Her face became almost as red as her dress.

Daniel who had by now found his wallet, was watching this scene in utter amusement. His assistant looking flushed, laid out in a long flowing red dress, on top of the sandwich guy, who looked like he was in Heaven.

"ah hmmm." Daniel cleared his throat. "Hey Gio, I found my wallet. And Betty did you bring the notebook?"

Betty realizing the real reason why she came to Daniel's office and thinking about what had happened, then climbed off of Gio quickly. As she was climbing off of him one of her hands lightly grazed his leg, as she was looking around for the notebook that she had brought. Gio felt an electric shock go through his body. _Wow. _He instantly thought.

"Here it is!" Betty exclaimed spotting the notebook a few feet away from where she had ran into Gio, who was still laying on the ground. The notebook had flew out of her hand when she had collided into him. Betty grabbed the notebook, and stood up smoothing down some parts of her dress. She took the notebook over to Daniel and gave it to him.

"Here you go Daniel."

Daniel gave her a grateful smile. "Betty you are a life saver. Thank you so much."

At this time Gio had finally decided to get up off the floor and went over to Daniel's desk.

Daniel picked up his wallet and paid Gio, giving him a pretty nice tip. "Thanks again man."

Gio smiled and stepped back putting the money in his pocket. After he did, he straightened up and looked at Betty and got a better look at her. Her dress was so beautiful and long, and it was so _her_. It fit her perfectly. She looked so beautiful and Gio felt his heart beating very quickly and quite loudly it seemed. He wished that he could make it stop but he realized that in that moment that he couldn't control his heart, no matter how hard he tried.

Betty could feel Gio's eyes burning into her side. She knew that he was staring at her and that worried her. _What's wrong with me? _She wondered. _Is my dress crooked, is my hair messed up, because I fell? Why is Gio staring_ _at me?_

Daniel saw Gio staring at Betty too but unlike Betty he wasn't clueless. His suspicions that Gio had feelings for Betty were confirmed. He could tell by the way that Gio was looking at her, the way that he seemed _mesmerized_ by her, that he definitely felt something strong for Betty. What exactly that was Daniel wasn't sure. He just knew that there was something there, and that _he_ was going to stay out of it. Daniel broke the silence.

"Well, Betty." He said looking into her eyes. "Thank you again, for delivering the notebook to me, I really appreciate it." He paused. "And by the way Betty you look amazing."

Betty smiled, touched by Daniel's sincerity. "Thank you Daniel, and if you don't need anything else, I'll be leaving now." Daniel nodded.

"I can walk you out." Gio offered. The words had come out of his mouth so quickly, before he had a chance to stop them.

"I think that would be a good idea." Daniel said smiling. "Gio can you walk her out to her car or cab, it is dark outside."

Gio nodded. He turned to Betty. "Come on."

For a moment Betty froze. She hadn't come here by herself. Henry had driven her, and she was worried that he would see her with Gio. She knew how he felt about Gio, and she didn't want to ruin tonight for him. She had to think of something quick.

"Okay, Daniel. I will see you later." She waved to Daniel and stepped out of his office, with Gio following behind her. Gio closed the door to Daniel's office. They both started walking away, and after a little while Betty turned to Gio.

"It's nice that you want to walk me out, but I think I can make my way outside just fine."

Gio frowned. "Are you sure it's dark and…"

"And Henry is waiting for me outside in his car. His car is parked right outside the building. If anything were to happen _he _would be there for me." Betty didn't know why she felt the need to emphasize this, but she did.

Her words were like a slap to Gio's face. "Okay." He said quietly. "I know that you have Egg Salad to protect you and of course you wouldn't want him to see us together."

Betty was quiet for a moment. She didn't know what to say except "you're right" but that would sound insensitive, and she didn't want to sound that way.

They were getting closer to the elevator and Gio stopped and looked at Betty. "You go ahead down, I'm going to the men's room. I guess I _won't _be seeing you later."

Betty was surprised at the level of hurt that came from Gio's voice.

"I…well…um… well good-bye Gio." She walked a little closer to the elevator and her shoe got caught up in the bottom of her dress. She went tumbling forward. All of a sudden she felt two arms wrapping around her waist preventing her from crashing into the metal door of the elevator. Gio had caught her before she crashed.

"Um Thanks." Betty said looking down at her shoes. She felt Gio's arms, tightly holding on to her waist. She noticed that his arms were really sturdy and strong. "Well, I better be going now Gio." She felt him let go of her reluctantly or so it seemed.

Betty walked closer to the elevator and pushed the button waiting for the door to open.

"Betty." She heard Gio say her name.

"Yes, Gio?" She asked curiously.

He hesitated for a moment, before he said anything. "Daniel's right… you look _incredible_."

Betty was stunned by Gio's statement. She didn't know what to say.

"Thank You." She finally managed to say softly.

He nodded and the elevator door opened and Betty went inside giving Gio a somber wave before the door shut.

Gio watched the door close. He felt his heart drop to his feet and feelings of desire, sadness and defeat overcame him. He tried to shake them off, but was unsuccessful. As he waited by the elevator for the next few minutes, enough time to give Betty to go outside to Henry's car and leave before either of them saw him, his Aunt Taddea's words flashed through his mind like a big sign.

_Giovanni… you're in love._


	11. Chapter 11

-1Thanks for the reviews and comments.

**Chapter 11**

Betty walked through the lower floor of Mode. Her delivering the notebook to Daniel had taken more time than she had thought it would. She had just expected to run it in to him and run back out. She hadn't expected to _literally _run into Gio there. It had definitely been a surprise seeing him at Mode especially this time of night, but there he had been and Betty hadn't realized he was there until she had fallen on top of him. Her cheeks grew warm as she thought about falling on him and how long they had stayed like that. _I should have just gotten up immediately. There was no need to stay on him like that, I was probably crushing him. _

As Betty walked closer to the exit of the building she looked down at her feet for a second hoping that she wouldn't trip again. Thankfully upstairs, when she had tripped Gio had been there to catch her before she fell into the elevator, and Betty was grateful for that. She didn't want to celebrate Valentine's Day with Henry with a bruised face. She wanted tonight to be special for him and she had wanted to look her very best. A black and blue face was not looking her very best. At that moment a smile broke out on Betty's face. She felt that she did look her best or at least much better than she normally did. Not only had her family complimented her, but so did Henry, his eyes had lit up when he saw her and she knew that he really loved the way that she looked.

Betty's family and Henry weren't the only ones who had remarked how good she looked that night. Daniel had given her a compliment as well. Daniel Meade who had a reputation for being a playboy, who was used to dating the most beautiful models and had even dated a few famous celebrities had told that she looked _amazing. _Betty had been deeply touched by her boss's compliment. And Gio. Gio had told her that she looked _incredible, _and when Betty had looked into his eyes she knew that he meant it. Gio's comments had surprised Betty. Sure he probably wasn't as superficial as Daniel could be, but she knew that she probably wasn't his type. He was probably used to dating really pretty girls, more along the lines of her sister Hilda, girls that were considered hot and sexy, two things that Betty would not have labeled herself as. But Gio had given her a compliment as well, one that was genuine, and his compliment had made her happy. Betty figured that she wasn't either man's type but the compliments from Daniel and Gio had made her feel really good.

Betty had now gotten outside of the Mode building and spotted Henry's car. He was still on the inside patiently waiting, listening to one of his favorite bands on the radio. She walked over and opened up the car door climbing inside. Henry smiled when he saw her and turned down the radio.

"You're back!" He exclaimed happily. "That took longer than I thought it would."

Betty smiled back at Henry. "Me too, but I am here now and let's go, I am curious to see what you have planned for tonight."

Henry grinned. "All right my lady, let's get this date started." He began to drive away from the Mode building.

On the way to wherever Henry was taking her to, he sung along to some of his favorite songs. Betty giggled at Henry's singing, he wasn't the best singer in the world, but he was way better than the band of accountants that he managed.

"Did you know that the red rose was the favorite flower of Venus the goddess of love?" Henry glanced to his side at Betty who was sniffing one of the roses that he had brought her.

"No, I did not know that, but it doesn't surprise me." Betty leaned back against the headrest in Henry's car and smiled. "I guess a lot of women have something in common with Venus. I wonder which mythological figure loved Valentine Day cards, I wonder which one got the most?" She joked.

Henry grinned. "I don't know, but teachers receive the most Valentine Day cards out of any other group of people."

"Really?" Betty sat up in her seat. "I didn't know that. I don't remember a lot of my teachers receiving Valentine Day cards, but what do you know, you learn something new every day."

Henry continued driving and he and Betty chatted some more about the history of Valentine's Day and he told her some more interesting facts about it.

Henry drove the car into a space in a parking lot. "We're here." He said cheerfully. He got out of the car and went over to her side. Henry opened the door and held out his hand, Betty grabbed it, and stepped out and looked to see where they were.

She smiled. "Oh, Henry! You brought me to A Taste of Paris. I've always wanted to go here."

Henry smiled. "I know. You always said that when you started making more money, this would be one of the first restaurants that you would go to. I thought that you would like to try it a little early."

Betty had a huge smile on her face. It was so thoughtful of Henry to bring her here, she knew that this place was pricey, and it meant a lot to her that he had decided to take her here for Valentine's Day.

"Thank you Henry, I have wanted to go to this place for a very long time." Betty and Henry walked hand in hand to the front of the entrance. There were only a few people in front of them. When they got on the inside there was a man standing at a podium with a big book in front of him. Betty and Henry approached him.

"Hello." Henry greeted courteously. "We had a reservation for 8:30 under Grubstick."

The man nodded and looked at the book of reservations. "That was some time ago, but I do believe we have a few tables left, follow me." The man grabbed two menu's and led Henry and Betty through the brightly decorated restaurant. Betty smiled as she glanced around, the restaurant was so beautiful and she loved the way that the tables looked, with the elegant table cloths and fancy wine glasses. The waiter finally led them to a table. "Here you go, a waiter should be with you shortly."

Henry went over to the other side of the table and pulled out the chair for Betty.

"Thank You."

A couple of moments later the waiter arrived and asked them if they wanted anything to drink, they ordered a bottle of wine, and decided to take a few minutes to look over the menu. Almost all of the items were in French and Betty could hardly make anything out.

"Wow, I really don't know what any of these items are." She confessed to Henry.

"No, problemo." Henry assured her and read off some of the items to her and told her what type of dishes they were. Henry had taken five years of French, two years in high school and three in college so he was pretty familiar with the different terms.

After finally deciding on what they wanted to eat and placing their orders with the waiter, Betty reached across the table and grabbed Henry's hand. "Thanks for this Henry, this place is so lovely."

Henry smiled slyly. "It's a nice place but it seems to be missing something." At that moment a man came by their table and started playing on a violin. Betty smiled at the musician and her smile got even wider when she recognized the song.

"Oh my gosh, that is _The True Love Of Maria _it's the same song that we heard in…"

"That movie we were watching last week _Maria's Choices_, we heard that song when she met up with her true love Philip at the end of the movie and you commented on how much you loved the song. I thought you wouldn't mind hearing it again."

Betty's face lit up. This is one of the reasons why she loved Henry so much, he was so thoughtful and caring. He understood her, what she liked and what made her happy, and he somehow always found a way to give her what she wanted. He was amazing. She held her hand in his and continued listening to the soft music of the violin and closed her eyes for a moment. This had to be the best night of her life, she was having such a good time with the man that she loved.

After the song was over the musician bowed, Henry tipped him and he left. A little while later the waiter brought Betty and Henry their food. Dinner was delicious, and quite pleasant as Betty and Henry laughed and chatted about different things including work, and how Henry's best friend Kenny had been caught in the ladies restroom by some of the models at Mode. Betty and Henry were having a good time and Betty was very happy.

After dinner Betty and Henry drove around some and Betty spotted a park that wasn't too far from Henry's apartment building. "Hey let's get out and take a walk in the park. It's a really nice night, and I just want to walk."

"Okay, if you want to go for a walk, we'll go for a walk." Henry drove near the park and found a parking spot. He went over to Betty's side to let her out, and the two started walking through the park, holding hands and enjoying the cool breeze and the quietness of the evening. Betty didn't see anyone around, it was just the two of them and everything seemed right in the world. It seemed like a lifetime that Betty and Henry spent walking in the park enjoying each other's presence, sometimes speaking, sometimes walking along in silence.

After walking for some time Henry motioned for Betty to follow him to one of the park benches. They sat down together and Henry turned on the park bench so that he could face Betty. "I have something for you." He stated, a smile creeping across his face, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a red square box.

Betty felt her pulse speed up. She wondered what was in the box.

Henry opened it and inside was a ring. A beautiful white gold ring, with a heart shaped ruby in the center and three little diamonds on the side.

Betty gasped. She felt like she was going to faint. "Henry is that, is that what I think it is, is it…?"

"It's just something to show you how much I love you, Betty." Henry stated meaningfully. "Something to show you how much you mean to me. Consider it a token of our love."

Henry slipped the ring on her finger and smiled at her broadly. "There it fits you perfectly. I had asked Christina for your ring size, because I wasn't sure."

Betty looked down at the ring on her finger, overjoyed, happy and also relieved. So this ring wasn't _The _ring. If it had been Betty wasn't sure what she would have said or done, she didn't think that she was ready for that yet.

She looked up into Henry's eyes, and at the way that the love that he had for her shown through. Betty smiled and gently touched his face with her hand. "Thank You Henry, I love it, and I love you." She leaned forward, her hand still on his face and kissed him. It was a long, passionate kiss that seemed to go on forever. After their lips parted their foreheads touched and they stayed like that for a while. Betty then turned around, leaned back, and nuzzled into Henry's arms looking up in the sky and how bright it was with all the stars. This had been the best Valentine's Day that she had ever had, and she was incredibly happy. As she sat on the park bench in Henry's arms, looking up in the sky with him, she realized that she had never felt more loved before in her entire life.


	12. Chapter 12

-1**Chapter 12**

Gio was tossing and turning in his bed. He looked over at the alarm clock. It was 2:45 in the morning and he still hadn't managed to get to sleep. He had tried to close his eyes on several occasions and will himself to sleep, but it had not worked. Every time he closed his eyes he saw Betty. He saw her face when she had fell on top of him, and he saw her in her red dress. That dress. The fabric, the way that it flowed over her body. Gio had never been as captivated by a piece of women's clothing before, but he couldn't get that dress out of his mind, and mainly who was in that dress. Betty. She had never looked more beautiful to him than she had last night.

Gio sighed and shook his pillow. He had to stop thinking about her. There was really no point to it. She didn't want him, she wasn't with him, she was with Henry. That was who she had wore the dress for, Henry not him. Henry was the man that she had gotten dressed up for, Henry was the man that she had spent her Valentine's Day with and not at home like Gio had thought they would. Henry was the man that Betty _loved. _And Gio knew that he would have to accept that fact or he would be having even more sleepless nights.

When Betty had left Gio upstairs at Mode his Aunt Taddea's words had come flying through his brain. Her words about him being in love. He had tried to push the idea away again, but was having a hard time doing so. He thought about his aunt's words, when he finally went downstairs and left the Mode building, he thought about them when he drove back to his deli and was working for the last few hours, before closing and he thought about them when he came home to his apartment and sat down. Gio had wondered could he really be in love with Betty?

At first he had thought that he wasn't. He had felt that he was probably just attracted to her, which was natural, and something that he could deal with more easily. Gio had been attracted to lots of women before so that was no big deal. Yes, he felt that he was attracted to Betty and that explained his feelings for her. Of course that had to be it, he was just attracted to her. No big deal. But after Gio thought about it more and how he was always thinking about her, how she found her way into his thoughts even at the most unlikely moments, he realized that it had to be more than that. It was more than just an attraction.

Gio had thought about the way that she had looked that night and remembered how he had wished that he was the man that she was going out with. He also reflected on how that wasn't the first time that he felt that way. He remembered how in the past, when she had told him that she was going out with Henry, how he had found himself wishing that he and her could do more things together. He had enjoyed the time that they had spent together, when she came to his deli to order sandwiches and talked to him, when he went to Mode and delivered sandwiches, when she had read to him some of the papers that she had written for her class. Gio had enjoyed the time that they spent together and had wanted to spend more time with her, but had chalked that up to being that he liked her as a friend, thought that she was a cool girl, and had wanted to hang out with her more. He hadn't thought it was more than that. Even when she had told him that she couldn't see him again, because Eggy felt threatened. Gio had been incredibly disappointed but even then, he felt it was because he was losing a friend. He wasn't really thinking about the fact that he couldn't get her out of his mind.

But his conversation with his Aunt Taddea had begun to open up his eyes to some new revelations and when he had saw Betty, last night in Daniel's office, his eyes opened even more. He remembered how he felt lying there on the floor, with her holding onto him after they had fell, and how he felt walking her out of Daniel's office, how he wanted to walk her out to make sure that she was safe, how he wanted to protect her. When Betty had said that Henry was going to be outside and that he would be the one that would be there for her, that had stung Gio. He had felt hurt and even a little jealous. He wanted to be the one that would look out for Betty to keep her safe, he wanted to be the man that she leaned on if she was in trouble.

So, while sitting on his couch after work last night Gio had _then _come to the conclusion that he wanted to date Betty and that it was more than an attraction. He had figured that had to be it, and while that was stronger than him just being attracted to her, it wasn't as complicated as being in love with her. Gio had wanted to be with other women before, so to him it wasn't the biggest thing in the world. He hadn't ended up with every woman that he had wanted in the past and he had eventually moved on. Gio felt that he would eventually stop thinking so much about Betty, someone else would come along and bam he would no longer want to date her. That theory had seemed plausible enough to him and Gio had gotten ready for bed and had laid down, intending to get some sleep.

But he hadn't been able to. Betty kept flashing through his mind, he couldn't stop thinking about her and it had been worse than it had been any other night before. Gio thought about everything that had to do with Betty. He thought about all the time that he had spent with her, he thought about her laugh, her smile, her eyes, her curves, her ideas, her determination, her spirit, her personality and her jokes. He then thought about her relationship with Henry, the way that he felt about her relationship with Henry, the dress that she wore last night, the way he felt last night with her, and his Aunt's Taddea's words flashing loudly in his mind and Gio cursed. He cursed so loudly that he thought that he had waken his neighbors up. His Aunt Taddea had been right… he was in love with Betty.

This realization had hit Gio so hard, that for a moment he had ceased to breathe. He couldn't believe it but he knew it was true. He was in love with Betty. He didn't know when it happened, he couldn't remember when he first started feeling this way he just knew that somewhere between the first day that they met when she got him fired, to where he was now laying in his bed, that he had fallen in love with her. And he was suffering.

He didn't want to feel this way, okay deep down maybe he did, but he knew that loving Betty wasn't going to do him any good at least not right now. Betty didn't love Gio, he knew that, she loved Henry. She wanted to be with Henry, she considered him her soul mate and Gio knew that if there was any way that she could keep Henry in New York instead of him moving back to Arizona, when his child was born, she would do it in a minute. Gio loving Betty and wanting her for himself, wasn't going to change the way that she felt about Henry. Gio wasn't sure if anything could change that.

Gio had laid in his bed and put his hands behind his head and looked up at the ceiling of his bedroom. He wasn't sure what to do with the realization that he loved Betty. He had went through a few different scenarios on how he could handle things in his mind. He figured that he could tell Betty how he felt about her, but knew that it probably wouldn't do any good. Gio figured that him confessing his love to her would probably upset her. She was already so worried about spending any time with him, because of how Henry felt about it. If she found out that Henry's concerns were legitimate, then she would probably make sure that she never saw Gio again.

Even though Gio had reasoned, that was what she was trying to do now, so what would he have to lose if he told her how he felt? She would just try to avoid him even more. But Gio thought about her being uncomfortable if he told her how he felt and he didn't want her to feel that way, not around him. Plus, there was the one thing that he feared the most would happen if he told Betty that he loved her, the rejection. He knew that she would reject him and he didn't want to deal with that. He didn't want to look like a loser in front of her. So Gio had decided not to tell Betty how he felt at least not right away.

He then contemplated telling her after Henry left for Tuscon in a couple of months, but he knew that she would be hurting and probably wouldn't want anything to do with him. Who knew how long Betty would be heartbroken over Henry, it could be several months, before she got over it, and would be willing to give her heart to someone else, if she decided to give her heart to someone else again, and who is to say that person would be him? Gio knew that Betty might not _ever_ be interested in him romantically.

After realizing all of these hard truths Gio had come to a decision about what to do about his feelings for Betty. He had decided to keep quiet about it. After thinking it through he realized that it would be better if she never knew how he felt. If he told her it might relieve him of his suffering for a moment, but it could end up causing more pain for the both of them and Gio didn't want that. Gio decided that he was going to keep his mouth shut.

It was now 4:10 in the morning and Gio still hadn't been able to get to sleep. He kept thinking about Betty, his feelings for her, and his decision. He hoped that he was doing the right thing for the both of them, he hoped that he could live with his decision, and he hoped that some day that he would be able to sleep again.


	13. Chapter 13

-1Thanks for the reviews and comments, I really appreciate it.

**Chapter 13**

**"**Well, look at that. That is a lovely ring." Christina looked at Betty's hand and at the ring that Henry had given her. "That was pretty romantic of Henry."

"Yes, it was." Betty gushed.

"So." Christina picked up a needle and started sewing a dress. "I take it you had a wonderful Valentine's Day?"

"The best. Everything was just so _perfect. _Henry really outdid himself. I mean we started the date kind of late, I did come to Mode to bring Daniel a notebook that he needed before we started the date."

Christina shook her head. "That Daniel, he would call you in the wee hours of the morning if he needed something and expect you to bring it right over."

Betty laughed. "Yeah, but he really needed it, it was no big deal, I just ran it in to him, it did take longer than I expected, I mean I accidentally ran into Gio and fell on top of him and…"

"You ran into Gio, what was Gio doing at Mode at night?" Christina asked curiously.

"Oh, he was just there to deliver some sandwiches to Daniel." Betty folded her hands in her lap. "I barely noticed him until I was literally on top of him."

Christina snickered. Betty smiled and rolled her eyes. "It was an accident, I was in a rush to get back to the man that I love, I would have ran over anyone to get back to Henry."

Christina smiled. "Aww…young love, reminds me of when I first met Stuart. So what else did you and Henry do?"

Betty then told Christina about the dinner and the walk in the park afterwards. They talked a little more about Henry and then about the upcoming fashion show that Mode was planning.

"We are going to feature clothes from some really great designers, like that new really popular designer, Sage Austin."

"Oh, yeah I love Sage Austin's clothes, very classy." Christina said admiringly.

"Me too. Hey I wonder if Daniel will let us use some real women like we did last time. That went over really well with the press. I don't even think that Alexis will be against it this time." Betty stated cheerfully.

"Well, it could never hurt to ask." Christina smiled at Betty brightly and they chatted for a few minutes longer, and then Betty told Christina good-bye and made her way back to her desk. Her lunch hour was over and she had a lot of work to do. As she was walking back to her desk she noticed Marc and Amanda at the receptionist desk.

"Let's hurry up Marc. It's my lunch break now and I want to get to Linda's while I still have time. She is supposed to give me another reading today. Since she was spot on about me rescuing a dog, and lead me to my father, I am very curious to see what else she has to say about me."

"Well, we already know you can't have kids." Marc stated matter of fact.

"Marc, shut up!" Amanda hit him lightly on the shoulder. "I don't want the whole floor to know my business, it makes me look pathetic, well_, I _could never look pathetic, but still…" She reached out and took Marc's hand in hers. "Let's get out of here." They started to run to the elevator, and as they passed Betty Marc called out.

"Hey Bertha, you are totally working that parachute that you're wearing." Betty rolled her eyes at Marc's comments and went to her desk, sat down and began to work.


	14. Chapter 14

-1**Chapter 14**

Marc and Amanda entered Linda's place anxious to see the psychic. She had her back turned to them and was on the phone talking to her daughter Kelly.

"Kelly put that cigarette down, I can smell it through the phone. Put the cigarette _down _Kelly." Marc and Amanda could hear the sound of Linda's daughter's voice on the other end of the line. "Un-huh, well all I know is that the house better not smell like an ashtray when I get home." Linda hung up her phone, turned around and smiled at Marc and Amanda.

"Well, if it isn't the Wonder twins. What brings you two back so soon?" Linda put her phone on the table and went over to Marc and Amanda. "Oh, honey just keep putting the ointment that the doctor prescribed on that rash and it will go away." Marc and Amanda glanced at each other and quickly looked away.

"How does she know everything?" Amanda asked in amazement.

"It's a gift." Mark stated.

"Well, come on sit down and tell me what is going on with you guys." Linda led them over to her couch and they all took a seat.

Amanda leaned forward excitedly. "Well, you were right about my father, I totally found my B, she led me to a kiss, and to make a long story short my dad is Gene Simmons."

"Really?" Linda sounded surprised. "Man, I am good. I am definitely going to raise my prices higher."

"Really, and now I was wondering…" Amanda was cut off when Linda closed her eyes and started waving her hands around. "Oh Boy!" Her eyes popped open and she looked at Amanda.

"What is it?" Amanda asked excitedly and stole a glance at Mark. "Is this about me meeting the man of my dreams, I know you said before that I would never have kids, but that doesn't mean that my Casanova won't come…"

"Shhh!" Linda held up her hand and closed her eyes again. "Wow." She opened her eyes and looked at Amanda, with a weary look on her face. "Honey, your life is going to be in danger, and my visions tell me that it is going to be in danger more than once."

Amanda gasped. "What, my life is going to be in danger, more than _once? _Who what when where why!?" Amanda started panicking and looked over at Marc for support.

"Give us the goods woman, if Mandy's life is going to be in danger, we need details." Marc stared at Linda intently waiting for answers. "We need to know _everything."_

Linda sighed and glanced up at the sky. "I don't see everything, I only see things in bits and pieces. But wait a minute…" Once more she closed her eyes and this time a smile came across her face. "You will be saved. The letter G is coming to me. G is going to rescue you every time that your life will be in danger. You need to stay close to the G. The G will be there for you and…" Linda put two fingers to her head, she appeared to be in deep concentration. "You will be there for the G. You will be there for each other." Linda opened her eyes, and crossed her hands over her lap. "So, is there anything else I can do for you?" She smiled glancing from Marc to Amanda. "If not I now accept credit and debit cards for my services."

Amanda and Marc were both speechless and Amanda started to shake a little. Marc put his arm around her to comfort her and lightly rubbed her arm. He spoke. "Well, if you don't have any more doomsday predictions, I guess our business is done here. He stood up and glanced down at Amanda who still sat on the couch in silence, and who still looked visibly shaken by Linda's predictions. "Come on Mandy, let's pay this quack-I mean lady and let's get out of here." He pulled her to her feet and managed to drag her over to Linda's cash register to pay her. After they paid Linda, Marc and Amanda left and started to walk back to Mode.

They walked in silence for a little while. During their walk Marc kept glancing over at Amanda to make sure that she was okay. She had a sad pouty look on her face and Marc had never seen his friend look so depressed, except for the few times that she had missed out on some clothing sales from her favorite stores and when she had found out that Faye was her mother. He put his arm around her. "Aww, Mandy don't worry about what Linda said, who's to say that she is even right in her predictions. Sometimes I think she just makes things up."

Amanda looked up at Marc with a sad look in her eyes. "But Marc, she was right with her clues about my father, she led me straight to him. She always seems to know what her daughter is up to, and you said so yourself that she has been pretty accurate about you."

Marc nodded. "Okay, so maybe she was a little accurate on some of the things that she predicted but who is to say that she is right about your life being placed in danger multiple times? And even if she was right, she said that you were going to be saved. That the G would save you every time. So all you have to do is find this G and you're in the clear."

Amanda frowned. "Her mentioning the G was kind of strange. Who is this G that she was talking about? All I could think of is several words that begin with the letter G,.. Gucci, Geraldo Rivera, Grape Nuts cereal, Ghirardelli chocolate, Gelato…" Amanda suddenly paused. "I'm starving! Worrying about life or death really takes a toll on a girl's appetite." Her and Marc continued to walk down the sidewalk until she spotted a hot dog vendor. "Ooh, I want one of those." She dragged Marc over to the cart ignoring his pleas about eating meat shaped like a tube. "Hey give me a hotdog, with extra mustard and ketchup." She instructed to the man behind the cart. He fixed her a hot dog, she paid him and her and Marc continued to walk down the street.

Amanda began eating her hot dog, when all of a sudden Marc nudged her. "Don't be too obvious, but on your left across the street, there is a woman who is committing all types of crimes against fashion."

Amanda glanced at the woman and smirked. "Oh, my gosh, she looks like a polka dotted whale who has just joined the circus. She kind of reminds me of Betty."

Marc and Amanda laughed and Amanda took a few more bites of her hot dog. Marc kept making jokes about the unfortunate woman and Amanda kept laughing, in spite of the big chunk of hot dog in her mouth. All of a sudden she stopped. The piece of hot dog had slipped down the wrong pipe, and Amanda felt like she couldn't breathe. She knew that she was choking. She turned to Marc for help pushing her hands toward her throat to indicate that she was choking. Marc laughed at first when he saw her do this.

"What's up Mandy, is that some type of sign language about how bad that woman is dressed. I _know._ Her outfit is atrocious."

Amanda's eyes widened and a look of desperation came into them. She continued to make the signal with her hands that she was choking. Marc started to realize that something was wrong with her. "Mandy are you okay?" He asked in a worried tone. Amanda's eyes got bigger and she continued to reach for her throat. Marc realized that she was choking and he started to panic.

"Oh, my gosh Mandy you're choking!" Marc unsure of what to do began thumping Amanda on the back, hoping that this would make her stop choking. After doing this for a few seconds, he realized that it wasn't working and Marc tried to think fast. He thought that he should probably try the Heimlich thingy, but he wasn't sure how to do that, and he heard that if done incorrectly it could break a person's ribs and really hurt them. Marc knew Amanda would kill him if he broke her ribs. And he didn't want to hurt her because he did the Heimlich thingy incorrectly. Marc decided to go get help. He ran into the nearest place, a restaurant with a pickle on the door.

"Help, my friend is choking!" He screamed out in the restaurant looking around for help. The few customers in the restaurant glanced up at him looking very surprised.

Gio stood behind the counter and looked at the man that had just come in screaming about his friend choking. He thought he recognized him, he did recognize him, he worked at Mode with Betty and was the friend of that blond receptionist. Right now he seemed to be very scared and had a frantic look on his face.

Gio came from behind the counter and went over to Marc. "You said that your friend is choking." He inquired. "Where is your friend?"

Marc recognized the sandwich guy. He was the one that had the hots for Betty. "She's outside, she needs help!"

Gio ran past Marc outside and saw the blond receptionist. He saw that she was a bright shade of red, and he saw that her hands were grabbing at her throat and she looked very scared. Gio immediately went behind her, put his arms around her, balled one of his hands into a fist and placed his thumb right above her belly button. He placed his other hand on top of his fist and he began to give a series of thrusts. After he did this, the piece of hot dog came flying out of Amanda's mouth. Once the hot dog chunk was gone and she had stopped choking, Amanda instantly relaxed and leaned against her rescuer. She felt their hands release her and she stepped away and turned around. She was surprised at who had saved her.

"Thank you for saving me." She said gratefully "But…hey don't I know you? Aren't you that sandwich guy? You come to Mode sometimes to deliver sandwiches and moon over Betty. You're Gio Tio."

Gio frowned slightly. "It's Gio Rossi, and yes I have seen you around a couple of times. You're the receptionist right?"

Amanda nodded. "Amanda Tanning."

At this point Marc had came out of the deli and went over to Amanda to hug her.

"Mandy, I was so scared. I thought you were going to choke to death or something. Who knew that a little piece of processed meat could put your life in danger?" After Marc made this remark, he and Amanda instantly pulled apart, and looked at each other. Amanda raised one eyebrow.

"My life was put in danger." She whispered. "Linda was right! Marc, she was right! My life was put in danger and I was saved. I was saved!" She grabbed his arm excitedly.

Marc nodded. "Yes you were saved. But she mentioned that you would be saved by the G. What exactly is the G? Wait a minute…" They both turned and looked at Gio, who had been watching them curiously. Amanda gasped.

"Gio Tio, you're my G!" She exclaimed. "Linda my psychic said that my life would be put in danger more than once, and that the G would save me every time. Well, my life was put in danger today and you saved me. _You're my G." _Amanda whispered this last line in a mystical manner, causing Gio to raise his eyebrow.

_She is a strange one. _He thought. He smiled at Amanda and Marc and nodded. "Okay, then, well if you guys don't need anything else, I am going back to work." He started to make his way to the front door of his deli, but Amanda walked in front of him and stopped him.

"Hold the bologna Oscar Meyer. My life is going to be put in danger again, I'm going to need you again, who knows how many times, but Linda said I would. So…" Amanda wasn't quite sure what she was trying to say because she was so bewildered.

Gio gave her a look. "I think that as long as you remember how to chew you're good. I really do have to get back to work. Bye." He went to the front door of his deli, opened it up and went back inside to work, not noticing some of the admiring looks that he was getting from his customers.

Amanda stood outside and watched him through the window for a few seconds and then turned to Marc.

"_He's_ my G. The sandwich guy is my G." She looked at Marc in amazement.

Marc smiled. "It shocks the heck out of me too, Mandy, but come on let's get back to Mode." He hooked his arm through hers and the two of them made their way back to Mode.


	15. Chapter 15

-1Thanks for the reviews.

**Chapter 15**

Marc and Amanda stepped out of the elevator and made their way to Amanda's desk. Amanda went behind it and set her purse down. As soon as she sat down at her desk, Betty came running up to her.

"Amanda, great you're back!" She exclaimed. She had a sheet of paper in her hand and laid it on Amanda's desk. "Daniel needs you to call these list of designers to make sure that they are still going to have their clothes featured in our fashion show."

Amanda looked down at the sheet of paper and frowned. "Isn't this typically _your_ job?"

Betty nodded. "Normally, but Daniel needs me to run some errands and he wanted you to call these people. It's five designers, so it shouldn't take too long."

Amanda grunted and took the sheet of paper. "Okay. I guess it is the least that I can do since your lover saved my life today."

A look of confusion came across Betty's face. "What? Henry saved your life today?"

Amanda shook her head. "No, not your number lover, your sandwich lover, Gio."

Betty frowned. "For the last time Amanda, Gio is not my _lover_, and how did he save your life today?" Betty wasn't sure what Amanda was talking about but she was curious about how Gio saved her life.

Marc who had been standing near Amanda's desk suddenly spoke up. "Amanda choked on a wiener, and the sandwich guy came running to her rescue."

"Marc! Don't say it like _that." _ Amanda glanced quickly at Marc and then turned her attention back to Betty. "I was a little hungry, so I bought a hot dog on my way back to Mode. I started choking and Gio came out to save me. He did that thing. You know that thing when the person grabs you around the waist and tries to press on your stomach. _Whatever_ that's called."

Betty adjusted her glasses. "You mean the Heimlich maneuver."

"Yeah that thing. Anyway he saved my life much like my psychic said that he would." Amanda reached inside a drawer in her desk and pulled out a fingernail file and started to file her nails.

"It was quite the scene I must say." Marc stated leaning against Amanda's desk and looking at Betty. "Poor Mandy was practically dying, choking on that little piece of meat, and I went to get help and Gio came running out of his deli to save her. It was pretty gallant of him, and heroic, well he was as gallant and heroic as a short guy who makes ham sandwiches can be."

Betty smiled slightly imagining the scene. "Well, I am glad that Gio was there to save your life. You might be surprised at how many lives choking claim each year. It's nice to have someone around who knows how to help, I mean this one time I was choking on a pretzel and…"

"That's nice Betty." Amanda interrupted and reached for the phone on her desk. "I think I'm going to start calling these snobs with the great clothes now. Is there anything else that Daniel wants me to do?" She looked down at the paper with the list of designers that Betty had given her. She raised one of her eyebrows when she noticed one of the names.

"No, that is all that Daniel needs from you right now." As Betty turned to leave, Amanda asked her a question.

"Hey, Betty, one of the designers, on this list is Sage Austin. What do you know about her?"

Betty shrugged her shoulders, not sure what Amanda was asking. "Not a whole lot. She is a new designer, whose clothes have started to become really popular. They are very classy and elegant. Why do you ask?"

Amanda frowned and she seemed to be in deep thought. "I'm not sure, her name sounds vaguely familiar to me, like I know her from some place."

"You probably have heard of her clothes before, and that is where you remember her name from." Betty suggested.

"Maybe." Amanda picked up the phone and started to dial the first number on the list.

Betty turned and started to walk away, and after giving Amanda a wave, Marc followed her.

"Hey, wait up Betty." Betty turned around to face Marc.

"What do you want Marc, I have to run some errands for Daniel and I don't have time to mess with you right now. You have already made fun of the outfit that I am wearing today."

Marc looked at Betty and smiled. "I have, but there are so many things that I can say about your outfit. I can think of at least twenty insults for your shoes alone. But that is not what I want to talk to you about. I want to talk to you about Amanda. She's in trouble Betty."

Betty looked at Mark curiously. "What's wrong with Amanda?"

"Well." Marc leaned forward. "We went to see a psychic today, our psychic and she told Amanda that her life is going to be put in danger several times, but that she would be saved."

"Really?" Betty asked. "I don't really believe in psychics, I think they are just out to get your money and will tell you almost anything that you want to hear."

Mark nodded. "Oh they definitely want your money, but Linda is pretty accurate with her predictions. She was right about Amanda's father, and she was right about Amanda's life being put in danger. Shortly after leaving her place today, Amanda choked on the hot dog."

"It could have just been a coincidence."

Mark shook his head. "I don't think so, Linda said that Amanda's life was going to be in danger multiple times, but that she will be saved by the G every time. Well, she was saved by the pastrami prince, Gio. I don't think that was a coincidence."

Betty looked down at her watch. She knew that she didn't have a lot more time left to run the errands that Daniel needed her to run. She had to end this conversation with Marc quickly.

"Look, Marc. I wouldn't worry about Amanda, she will be fine. I wouldn't put a lot of stock in what the psychic said. Sure Gio saved her today, and thank goodness that he did, but it was just a coincidence, nothing more. If you really think that this psychic is legit, then I have a closet full of designer clothes at home that I want to give you."

Marc laughed. "_Right_. Look Betty. You may not believe in Linda's predictions but I do and so does Amanda. And if Linda is right then that means that Gio is going to end up saving Amanda's life some more times."

"Okay, and what does that have to do with me?" Betty questioned glancing at her watch again.

"Well, you're his friend, _duh_." Mark stated. "I was just thinking maybe you could get him to come around Mode more, that way he is more likely to be close by when Amanda's life is in danger again."

Betty frowned. "Marc, Gio and I aren't exactly friends anymore."

Marc eyes widened. "Why not?"

Betty looked down at her feet. "It's complicated."

Marc nodded. "Hmm, I'll bet. I guess nerdy accountants and sandwich gurus don't mix very well, especially when you're thrown into the equation."

Betty looked up quickly, stunned by Marc's statement. "Huh?"

"Don't play dumb Betty. You do that everyday when you come to work looking the way that you do. Just because you are dense when it comes to fashion, doesn't mean you're dense when it comes to your… l_ove life_." Marc choked out the last two words.

Betty frowned again. She was starting to get annoyed, plus time was running out for her to run the errands for Daniel. "Marc my love life is really none of your business, and I really have to go, so if you'll excuse me…" She turned and started to walk away from him.

"Okay, whatever." She heard him call out behind her. "But think about what I said about getting Gio to come to Mode more. I want Amanda safe. I mean who else is going to help me make fun of you and some of the others, as well as give you well meaning advice. Including advice about your _love life_."

Betty shook her head at Marc's comments and went to run the errands for Daniel.


	16. Chapter 16

-1**Chapter 16**

Gio wiped down the countertop in his deli and looked around in his deli. It was 2:30 pm and the lunch rush was over. There were now a few customers sitting down and enjoying their sandwiches. As Gio continued to wipe down his countertop he found himself thinking about Betty. It had been eight days since he realized that he was in love with her, and since he had decided that he wasn't going to do anything about it.

Gio knew that he was making the right decision, but that didn't make it any easier. Not telling Betty about his feelings for her did not ease his pain or make him love her any less. It just made him more miserable. This past week he had threw himself into his work, hoping that would make him forget about her. But he hadn't had much success with that, he still found himself thinking about her, and wondering what she was doing, and who she was with. He knew that some of the time, that she was with Henry and that stung him. Gio wanted to be with Betty, but he knew that there was nothing that he could do about it. He would just have to find a way to deal with not being able to be with her, no matter how difficult it was going to be. Gio finished wiping down the countertop. He then went to wash his hands. At that moment the door opened and a woman came in. She went up to the countertop and smiled at Gio.

Gio looked at the woman. He thought that she was quite attractive. She was a brunette with shoulder length hair and had very pretty blue eyes. She was dressed in really nice clothes, she had on a beautiful blue blouse and jeans that fit her well. She was short, about five feet tall and she looked like she was in her mid twenties. Her smile was pretty radiant and Gio couldn't help but smile back at her.

"Hi, what I can get for you today?" He asked her courteously.

"Hi, I was wondering if you could make me a…" At that moment Gio heard a phone ring and the woman reached inside her purse.

"Excuse me for a moment." She nodded at Gio and walked a short distance from the countertop and answered her phone.

"Hi, Bobby? Yes I know the show is coming up soon. It is going to be happening in four days, and I already have picked out the clothes that I want used. Of course they are going to be appealing. These are from the newest line. Don't worry Bobby everything is going to be okay I promise."

Gio watched the woman talking on her cell phone. He noticed that she seemed confident and like she was in control of things. He got the feeling that she was a very important person. The woman chatted some more, and then hung up her cell phone. She came back over to the countertop.

"Work." She smiled. "Sometimes I just want to go some place to take a break and get away from it all. Do you ever feel like that?"

Gio nodded. "Not too much, it's doesn't really get that bad here. Sometimes I have a good amount of customers and big orders, but I like it when things are very busy."

The woman nodded. "In my line of work I like it when things are busy too, it's just that sometimes… I don't know, things get really hectic, and some of the people that I work with are always breathing down my neck. I just want to do what I love and make my customers happy." She smiled warmly at Gio.

Gio nodded. "I totally get that. I feel the same way about making sandwiches, it's something that I love to do but at the same time I get to make food that people can enjoy eating."

The woman nodded again. "It is rewarding to know that whatever business that you are in that you're making people happy, and even more rewarding if it is something that you want to do and that matters to you."

Gio smiled. He liked this woman. She was easy to talk to and she seemed like she cared. He wondered what type of work that she did. He wanted to ask her, but he decided to go ahead and make her order.

"So, what did you want to eat today?" He asked.

"Oh, I wanted to try a roast beef sandwich on wheat with Swiss and coleslaw and honey mustard and could you put some veggies up there too, like tomatoes, olives and lettuce, oh and some mayonnaise, and a little bit of olive oil."

_She's an eater_. Gio thought with satisfaction.

"Sure coming right up." Gio went and made her sandwich, making sure that he put everything up there that she wanted. While he was finishing making the sandwich, he asked her if it was to go or if she was dining in. She said that it was to go and he wrapped up the sandwich and brought it over to her. He rang her up, she paid him and he gave her back her change. She grabbed her sandwich and looked at him, giving him one more smile.

"Thanks for the sandwich. I'm sure it will be delicious, I have heard good things about your sandwiches and I decided that I just had to try one for myself. A lot of the people that I know keep saying that Gio's sandwiches are the best sandwiches around. So I wanted to see what the hype was about Gio. You are Gio right?" The woman asked curiously.

"Yes, I'm Gio, I own this place and your name is…?" He inquired.

"Sage Austin." The woman stuck out her hand and shook Gio's. Her hand was very soft and warm.

"Nice to meet you Sage. I hope that you enjoy your sandwich."

"I think that I will. If I like it I will definitely have to visit this place more often. Bye Gio." And with that Sage gave Gio a wave and walked away. He watched her walk away, and a small smile formed across his lips, he hoped that she would come back to try some more of his sandwiches.


	17. Chapter 17

-1Thanks for the review and comments.

**Chapter 17**

Betty came home and entered her house. When she stepped inside she noticed a woman sitting down on the couch watching television. The woman was in her 40's and had long curly dark hair that was pulled into a ponytail. She looked up at Betty when she stepped into the house and gave her a smile. Her eyes were bright and very kind looking.

"Hi, you must be Hilda's sister, Betty." The woman stated warmly.

Betty walked over to the living room and held out her hand for the woman to shake. "Yes, I'm Betty and you are…?"

"Taddea." The woman shook Betty's hand. "I am one of your sister's clients. I am waiting on her right now."

Betty nodded and sat on the chair facing Taddea, her eyes drifting to the television screen. She smiled when she saw what Taddea was watching.

"Oh, I love this movie." Betty exclaimed. "The woman in it, is a great actress, I really feel for her when she is trying to get custody of her children. Her ex-husband is so evil."

Taddea nodded. "Yes, he is, but this woman is a force to be reckoned with. She is fabulous. Plus she wears some really great clothes."

Betty laughed. "I think that she is fabulous too. And I love her clothes, they remind me of some of the clothes that were featured in a issue of our magazine at work."

Taddea turned to look at Betty. "You work at a magazine?" She inquired.

"Yes, I am the assistant to the Editor in Chief at Mode magazine."

Taddea smiled. "That sounds really interesting. I imagine your days are pretty busy."

Betty nodded. "They are, there is so many things that I have to do as an assistant, but it can be really fun and rewarding. I am learning a lot about the magazine business. I plan to put what I am learning to good use. I want to run my own magazine some day."

"Wow. That is a pretty big goal for yourself young lady. You seem pretty ambitious, I hope that you do find a way to get there. There is nothing wrong with going after your dreams, my son is teaching me about that right now."

"I know it is going to be a lot of hard work. But I am willing to put forth the effort to accomplish my goal. I really want to run my own magazine and working at Mode is helping me prepare for that. I just have to take things one step at a time."

"Well, I hope that you get there sweetie." Taddea said warmly.

"Thank you."

At that moment Hilda came into the room. "Okay, Mrs. R, I am ready for you. Hey, Betty."

"Hey, Hilda."

Taddea stood up and started to follow Hilda into the kitchen. She stopped for a moment and turned back to look at Betty. "It was nice to meet you Betty. I hope that you end up accomplishing your goals."

"It was nice to meet you too Taddea." Betty smiled at her and watched the two women leave the room.

She heard her cell phone ringing and she reached into her purse to retrieve it. The name that appeared was Henry.

"Hi, Henry what's up?" Betty asked cheerfully.

"Nothing much, Charlie had a check up and the baby is fine." The accountant said happily.

"I'm glad to hear that Henry. Hey are you still going to be at the latest fashion show for Mode. It is happening three days from now."

"I'll be there lady love." Henry assured her.

"Cool. We are actually using some real women again, and we found some really beautiful plus sized models. Of course we will still have the skinny models showing off the designs as well. It should be fun."

"It sounds fun."

Betty and Henry chatted for a few minutes longer, and then they said good-bye and hung up. Betty decided to take a nap and went upstairs to her room to lie down.


	18. Chapter 18

-1

**Chapter 18**

Gio walked up to the front of his deli, and reached into his pocket to get his keys. While he was doing this someone came running up to him. Gio looked up to see who it was. He recognized the person.

"Gio." Sage was almost breathless. She had been going for a morning jog, when she had noticed the deli owner.

"Hi." Gio smiled and looked at Sage. She had on a light green jacket, and some short brown shorts, that showed off her toned and muscular legs. Her hair was pulled back in a ponytail.

"Hey. It's Good to see you." Sage smiled, her breathing returning to normal.

Gio opened the door of his deli. "Do you want to come in?" He asked and stepped inside.

Sage nodded and walked inside of his deli. Gio went over to the case where he kept the drinks and grabbed a bottle of water.

He brought it over to Sage and handed it to her. "You look like you could use this."

Sage gratefully took the water and started to drink it. After she took a few sips, she put the top back on the bottle. "Thanks I needed that."

Gio nodded and went behind his countertop. Sage followed him.

"So, you run every morning?" He asked trying to start a conversation.

"Not every morning, but when I can, usually a few times a week when my schedule allows it." Sage set the bottle of water on the countertop and pulled one of her legs behind her back to stretch. She did this for a little while and then she stretched the other leg.

"I try to work out when I can, I usually go to the gym a few times a week." Gio stated and pulled out the cashbox.

Sage nodded and glanced at his muscular arms. "I can tell." She stepped a little closer to the countertop. "Hey, I am glad I ran into you. I was wondering if you would want to make an order of sandwiches for an event that I have coming up."

"Sure, what type of event is it for?" Gio asked placing some menus on the countertop.

"Well, it's for a fashion show, that I have coming up. I was wondering if you could make some sandwiches for some of the people that are going to be there, like the reporters, the camera people, and some of the people that I work with including some of the designers. Hey who knows maybe some of the models will eat your sandwiches, they are that good." Sage said graciously.

Gio laughed and smiled at Sage.

_He's got a cute smile. _Sage thought.

"Models eating my sandwiches? I don't know. I have tried to sell my sandwiches to models before, and they didn't want them. They would rather chew on lettuce and seaweed, instead of eating a sandwich."

Sage put one of her hands on the countertop. "I think that some of these models might. This fashion show is featuring some regular sized women and plus size models, so I think that some of them might eat your sandwiches after the show is over. I know that some of the guests at the show will, this will be good for your business."

Gio nodded. "I'll definitely do it. Just tell me how many sandwiches you want, what type of sandwiches you want, when you want them delivered and where you want them delivered."

Sage reached over and grabbed a pen and one of the menus. She started to write on the back of the menu.

"Here is the address and the time that I would like the sandwiches to be delivered. It's at a magazine company, Mode. The fashion show will be held in two days, and I would like the sandwiches to be delivered like around 7:30. I want about sixty five sandwiches and I would just like some variety, like Turkey, Ham and Roast beef. I want something delicious, and available for people to eat. This is supposed to be a really big fashion show and I want to make a good impression on the media and some potential customers."

Gio looked down at the information on the menu and back up at Sage. "I know where Mode is, I deliver sandwiches there sometimes. Do you work at Mode?" Gio hadn't recalled ever seeing Sage at Mode before, but then again, he never really paid attention to the people there except for Betty.

Sage shook her head. "No, I don't work there. But some of my clothes are going to be featured in Mode's fashion show. I am a fashion designer."

Gio nodded. He had thought that Sage had a pretty interesting job. She seemed like an intelligent woman who was going places.

"That's pretty cool. So how long have you been doing that?"

"A little over three years now. I went to a fashion institute to learn more about fashion design, and then with some money that I borrowed from some of my friends, I started to work on my own line of clothing. Things were kind of slow at first, especially during that first year, but things have really started to pick up. I'm starting to get a lot more customers, and more people are wanting to feature my clothes in their fashion shows. Everything has been going along rather nicely, it is exciting yet a little nerve wracking at the same time. But it is definitely worth it."

Gio smiled again. "That's great, it's nice to see people working towards their dreams, or in your case living it. I am a big believer in going after what you want. It's seems like that is what you are doing, you seem like an ambitious and intelligent young woman."

Sage blushed and looked down at her hands for a moment. She then raised her head and looked into Gio's eyes, her blue eyes connecting with his dark brown ones.

"Hey I was very fortunate, I started out with a few ideas and I had some good people supporting me. A little luck and some love can go along way."

"I believe that. You know you kind of remind me of a girl I know. She's young and ambitious like you are, and she's working towards her dream. Right now she's an assistant to the Editor in chief at Mode, but she wants to run her own magazine some day and she is working towards that goal. Maybe you have met her? She often helps organize events at Mode like fashion shows. Her name is Betty. Betty Suarez."

Sage didn't recognize the name. "I haven't heard of the name, maybe I'll meet her at the fashion show. Maybe you can introduce us. Since we are both ambitious young women." Sage smiled after she said the last line.

Gio looked past her for a moment, thinking about Betty. "Maybe." He said softly.

Sage looked at him noticing that his demeanor had changed. His eyes had a faraway look in them, and a trace of sadness was behind them. A frown had also come across his mouth. She wondered what was the matter with him, but decided not to ask, since she didn't know him that well.

"Well". Gio turned back to Sage. "I will definitely make these sandwiches for you Sage, and I hope that everyone enjoys them. I also hope that things go well for you at the fashion show and that people really like your clothes."

"Thank You". Sage said graciously and looked at the clock behind Gio. She had to be at work in a little while, and she had to leave to get ready.

"Well, I have to get ready for work, I will see you in a couple of days then?" She asked hopefully.

Gio smiled. "Yes, I will be there. I will deliver these sandwiches myself. Who knows maybe I will stick around to check out some of your clothes. I want to see what all the rage is about for the clothes of one of the hottest new designers." His eyes washed over Sage as he said this.

Sage felt herself blushing again, but hoped that Gio didn't notice it.

"Good, so I will see you then."

"You'll see me."

"That's great, well I will see you later Gio." Sage gave him a wave and a smile and started to walk out of his deli. For some reason she felt really good after talking with Gio, it was like her day was brighter or something.

Gio watched her leave the deli. His mood had brightened since he talked to Sage. He had waken up today, still feeling bummed about Betty, but since he saw Sage again, his mood had brightened some. Well except, when she talked about him introducing her to Betty. Since Betty was trying to ignore him, Gio didn't know if that was going to be possible. But in spite of that, Sage had left him feeling kind of good, he was feeling much better than he was before he saw her this morning. There was just something about Sage that had a positive affect on Gio, and that made him smile. He imagined that she had that effect on a lot of people. Gio turned around, and headed to the back of his deli to start setting up for the day.


	19. Chapter 19

-1Thanks for the reviews and comments**.**

**Chapter 19**

"Okay you guys can start setting up over there, near the runway." Betty motioned to the several photographers who had just arrived for the fashion show. Betty looked down at her watch, the fashion show would start in less than a couple of hours.

Betty went over to the chairs with the gift bags on them. She noticed that five of the chairs were missing gift bags. Betty quickly went and got the missing gift bags and set them on the chairs.

When she was through she looked up and saw several of the models standing around talking, some of them were trying on shoes and Jewelry to see what would go best with their outfits. Betty went over to them to make sure that they didn't need anything.

She knew that some of the other models were getting ready backstage and that some were probably down at the closet getting some last minute clothing items and accessories from Christina. During the next hour Betty continued to help set up the fashion show. Some people started arriving, including some of the designers, some people from the media, and Henry.

"Hi Henry." Betty greeted the accountant when she saw him and gave him a kiss on the lips. "I'm glad that you could make it."

"Hey Betty, I'm glad to be here." Betty and Henry chatted for a few minutes longer, while more people kept arriving for the fashion show. Betty noticed a short, sharply dressed woman entering the room. She had on a black pantsuit, with a belt and a top with a v cut. She was pretty, with shoulder length brown hair. She looked like she was in her mid twenties. Betty noticed that there were also two people with her, a man with glasses, and a tall blonde woman.

Betty saw Daniel go over to the young woman and speak to her. The woman smiled at Daniel and they talked for a while. Daniel and the lady finally ended their conversation and she and the people with her went to sit down.

Daniel came over to greet Betty and Henry. "Hey Betty. Hi Henry. Is everything going okay?"

Betty nodded. "Everything seems to be fine with the show Daniel. We should be able to start on time."

Daniel smiled. "Great. Some of the designers have started to arrive, and I want everything to be perfect. Alexis is really breathing down my neck, she wants this fashion show to be perfect. If everything goes well, we will be featuring some of the designers clothes in an upcoming issue. This will be really interesting to our readers. I'm sure some of them are dying to see the newest fashions from designers like Sage Austin."

"Hey is Sage Austin here?" Betty asked curiously. "I want to see what she looks like, maybe even meet her?"

"She's over there." Daniel indicated with a slight tip of his head to the young brunette that Betty had saw entering the room.

"Wow, she looks _young_. I expected her to be older."

"Yeah, Sage is one of our youngest designers, but her clothes are starting to become really popular. She is considered to be one of the best up and coming designers. The fashion world has their eye on her."

Betty smiled. "That's great."

Just then, Alexis entered the room and looked at Daniel. "I will see you in a little bit Betty, I am going to go talk to Alexis. I have a feeling that there is something that she wants to complain about, I'm going to see what that is."

Daniel left and Betty talked to Henry for a little while longer. During this time more people arrived, including other designers, Amanda and Marc, and Hilda and Justin who Betty had invited to the show.

"Oh, my gosh, Aunt Betty this place looks fabulous. This show is going to be even better than the last one. There is going to be lots of fashion and drama. I can _feel_ it." Justin said excitedly.

"It does look great. You did a good job in setting things up Betty." Hilda commented admiringly. "Hi Henry." She greeted the accountant. Henry smiled and greeted Hilda and Justin.

Betty looked down at her watch. "There isn't much time left before the show starts, I am going to go and see if there are any last minute things that need to be done. You guys stay here, I'll be back in a little while." Betty ran off.

Hilda, Henry and Justin stood around and talked to each other, commenting on the show and the people there.

At that moment Gio came into the room, with a cart full of sandwiches. Daniel noticed him. He told Alexis, that he would get back to her in a minute, and went over to Gio.

"Hi Gio. Did someone order sandwiches for tonight?"

Gio nodded. "Yes one of the designers did, Sage Austin. She said she wanted sandwiches for the people at this show. She said she wanted to make a good impression. Where do you want me to put these sandwiches at?"

"Hmm." Daniel looked around. "I guess over there near the bottles of water and fresh veggie trays." Gio nodded and took the sandwiches over to the other food and made sure that everything was set up properly. While he was finishing laying out the sandwiches, he heard a voice behind him.

"Hey, you came, those look delicious, I'd eat one right now, but I think that it would be best to wait until after the show."

Gio turned around to face Sage. He smiled when he saw her. She looked really pretty, in a very stylish looking black suit.

"Hey, wow you look great. Are you ready for your clothes to be showcased tonight?"

Sage smiled. "I'm ready, this is the biggest fashion show that has featured my clothes, but I think that everything will be okay."

Gio nodded. "I hope so, it looks like there are going to be a lot of people here tonight. It looks like it could be fun." Gio finished setting up the sandwiches. He stood up and noticed Henry, Justin and Hilda, engrossed in a conversation across the room. Gio knew that Betty was probably somewhere else, getting things ready for the show.

Gio knew that Betty was probably working hard, and making sure that everything was in order before the show began. She was such a go getter. As well, as intelligent, resourceful, beautiful, and to Gio _unattainable_. Gio sighed inwardly and turned his attention from Henry, Justin and Hilda and back to Sage. He gave her a warm smile.

"Well. Good luck tonight. I hope your clothes are a hit with everyone. I think that I am going to head out."

Sage gave him a soft smile. "You are leaving so soon? Why don't you stay and watch the show for a while, you might enjoy it, my clothes are going to be among some of the first showcased, I would love to hear your opinion about them."

Gio gave Sage a sheepish grin. "I don't know how helpful I would be to you, Sage I don't know much about women's fashion. I mean I know that some clothes look better than others, some look really good actually. But it's not something I think a whole lot about. I'm more attracted to a pretty face than a pretty pantsuit. And if they both come together, then I consider myself quite lucky." His dark brown eyes washed over Sage taking in her appearance once more. She was quite pretty and nice and Gio liked being around her. She had a nice effect on him, he felt better around her even though, a huge part of him was miserable about Betty.

_Maybe I should stay _Gio wondered to himself. _Sage seems like a nice woman, she might even become a good friend to me. And it would help if I could focus on someone who isn't Betty." But then again, if I stay, I would probably see Betty, I'd see her working, I would probably see her with_ _Henry… I really don't want to see her with_

_Henry, but.. _Gio looked into Sage's pretty blue eyes once more and smiled again.

_But I could definitely use a friend and Sage seems so nice. Besides I can't try to avoid Betty forever, we are bound to see each other again, Daniel does really like my sandwiches, and he will probably order from me again. I'm bound to run into her sooner or later. Might as well be sooner than later. _

"I guess I can stay for a little while. Jason can hold the fort down at my deli, just let me give him a call to let him know that I will be here for a while." Sage nodded at Gio and watched as he dialed Jason on his cell phone and talked to him.

Sage smiled to herself. She was glad that she had convinced Gio to stay at the fashion show for a while. She liked being around him and he made her feel at ease. She could definitely use his company and support tonight. She was quite nervous about her clothes being featured in a fashion show of this magnitude. Tonight all of the photographers, reporters, and other designers eyes would be on her clothes. Tonight could make or break her in the fashion world. If everyone loved her clothes all would be well, if they didn't…Sage tried to shake off the negative thoughts, and looked at Gio who had just finished his conversation with Jason.

"Okay, everything is good. I told Jason that I wouldn't be back for a while, and he's got everything under control at the deli. I'm ready to watch some of this show and see people faint at the sight of your beautiful clothes."

Sage laughed. "I could only be so lucky. Come on, let's go sit down, there are some seats in the front reserved for me and some of the people I work with, we were given a couple of extra seats, for guests." Sage hooked her arm through Gio's and they walked over to the seats near the runway and sat down, and waited for the show to begin.


	20. Chapter 20

-1**Chapter 20**

"So, what pieces of clothes do you intend to swindle tonight?" Marc questioned Amanda hovering close to her whispering conspicuously.

"Oh, I don't know, maybe a skirt, some boots, a purse, it depends on how fast I can knock some of those ostriches down on my way backstage to get some of the clothes.. When the show is over of course." Amanda smiled mischievously as she saw one of the models walk past. "I am so taking those shoes she is wearing." She whispered to Marc.

The pair continued walking and plotting on what clothes they would take after the fashion show was over. They entered the room where the runway was set up and saw that the room was crowded and that the show was going to start shortly.

They glanced around the room and did their usual pre fashion show gossip rundown of the designers and guests.

"There is Jill Flatstone. I hear she is drinking again." Marc commented.

"_Again_?" Amanda asked.

"Yeah, it's not that hard to believe.. I mean have you seen her new line? She had to be drinking when she designed those clothes. Her new business pants are some of the fugliest things I have ever seen. No one should wear them unless they want to be laughed out of the office."

"Yeah I have seen those _things, _they are hideous. But she was also drinking when she came out with her Summer skirts of 2000 line some years ago and those were fabulous, and she was drinking when she came out with her Flatstone evening dresses and those were pretty awesome and when she came out with her shoe line, I was pretty sure she was drinking then. Some of her best stuff has been when she has been off the wagon. Maybe she was _sober _when she designed those business pants."

"Hmm.. Maybe." Marc pondered. All of a sudden an excited look came upon his face. "Ooh there is Jennifer Rockelslimer, hate her name, love her clothes."

"She's cheating on her husband."

"_Again?" _Marc asked incredulously.

"Yes _again_, this time it's an Italian businessman. They have been seen all over the city, the tramp isn't even trying to hide it, this time."

Marc pouted. "Poor Josh Rockelslimer."

Amanda nodded. "Mr. Rockelslimer, is one nice piece of man steak. I don't understand, why he stays married to her. He's hot, super rich, smart, and very smug, he deserves better. He should divorce her and marry well…. _me_."

Marc laughed. "But then you'd be Amanda Rockelslimer."

Amanda raised her eyebrow and smirked. "So what? It's catchy. I'd be Amanda Rockelslimer, I'd have a hot husband and I would be super rich. It works for me."

Some more designers caught Marc's eye. "There is Marcus Papperson."

"He's had some work done." Amanda remarked.

Marc laughed again. "Some work done? Mandy, most of the factory has been worked on. Let's see he's had his "Eyes, brows, nose, chin…" Marc continued to list off all the work that Marcus had done to his body.

When he had finished. Amanda nudged him. "Hey I spot some newbies, like the one in the front row, with the small entourage, that includes.. _My G." _Amanda was surprised to see Gio sitting in the front row chatting with a brunette woman who looked vaguely familiar to her and a couple of other people.

"What's the ham king doing here?" Marc wondered curiously.

"Maybe he came here to make sure my life was being protected." Amanda smiled, remembering the psychic's prediction and how Gio had saved her life when she was choking.

"_Right_." Marc said unconvinced. "_That's_ why he's over there talking to the pretty brunette fashion designer and her posse."

"Okay. Well, maybe he's here to try and get me some free clothes, to save me from a bad fashion day. Life can be dangerous when you're having a fashion emergency, even though that _rarely_ happens to me."

"Well. " Marc grabbed Amanda's hand. "I don't really know why he's here, but let's go be noisy and find out." He led Amanda over to where Gio and the young designer were sitting.

"Hi, Gio!" They both greeted him in unison.

Gio nodded and smiled, "Hi, Amanda, Marc."

"So who is your friend, some new designer of a really big fashion company?" Amanda asked eagerly glancing at Sage.

Gio smiled. "Hopefully someday. Amanda this is my friend Sage Austin, a new and upcoming fashion designer. Sage, this is Amanda Tanning, she works at Mode."

Sage looked at Amanda. She thought she knew Amada from somewhere, but she couldn't quite place where she could know her from. _Oh well, maybe I've seen her around somewhere, or maybe I've met someone that looks like her_. Sage thought. She stuck out her hand and shook Amanda's. " Nice to meet you Amanda."

"You're charmed I'm sure." Amada stated with a smirk.

Sage glanced to her side at Gio who was stifling a laugh.

"_Ahem." _Marc nudged Amanda in her side.

"Oh yeah and this is my sidekick Marc, like a good designer purse, I rarely want him to leave my side."

Marc shook Sage's hand. "Marc St. James, at your services, if you ever want me, like as an assistant, a partner for your company, you know _whatever."_ He reached in his pocket and gave Sage one of his cards.

Mark and Amanda continued chatting with Sage for a few minutes talking and asking her questions about her clothing line. They put an end to the conversation when Marc spotted Tim Gunn and they ran off in pursuit of him.

"Those were your friends?" Sage asked Gio curiously. "They are an interesting pair."

Gio laughed. "They aren't really my friends, I have just talked to them a few times when I delivered sandwiches here. You're right they are um_… interesting."_

Sage nodded and smiled at Gio and then she turned her attention to the stage. The show was about to begin and Daniel Meade was walking to the center of the stage with a microphone in his hand.

"Good evening everyone and welcome to Mode's Spring fashion show. I am your host Daniel Meade. Be prepared to enjoy yourselves tonight. We have a lot of beautiful new clothes that we are going to show you tonight. Some by some well known popular designers, and some by some fantastic up and coming designers." When Daniel said that Gio and Sage looked at each other and smiled. "So sit back and let's enjoy fashion!" Daniel started to walk off the stage, some lights began to flash and the show began.


	21. Chapter 21

-1Thanks for the reviews and comments.

**Chapter 21**

"Hey you're kind of cute. Kind of nerdy but kind of cute." The older woman had her arms wrapped tightly around Henry's neck. "Uh, Thank You." Henry said nervously. He felt very uncomfortable. He had just come out of the restroom, when this woman who was obviously very drunk stumbled into him and wrapped her arms around his neck.

"Um..Ma'am.. I need to go." Henry gently tried to pull the woman off of him but her grip was very tight.

"Yes, Honey?" The lady cooed, batting her eyelashes at him, her vodka scented breath blowing in his face.

"I really need to get back to the fashion show."

"Why?" The woman pouted. "Don't go back there. Stay here with me." She rested her cheek against him.

_Oh Boy. _Henry thought. _I have to get this lady off me_.

"Uh, Ma'am…" Once more Henry tried to pry her off of him, but she was like an anchor she wouldn't budge.

"Henry!" He heard Betty call his name. He smiled at her nervously when she approached him and the clinging woman.

"Henry what is going…" Betty paused and looked at the woman. She recognized her and figured out what was going on.

"Miss Flatstone." Betty softly put her hand on the woman's arm. The woman raised her head, and looked at Betty. "Who are you?" she asked blankly.

"I'm Betty Suarez, Daniel Meade's assistant. We have met a couple of times before." Betty paused. "Um… Miss Flatstone would you like me to call you a cab to take you home?" Jill turned her attention back to Henry lightly caressing his cheek with her hand. "Only if this guy comes with me."

Betty frowned. This was typical behavior of Jill Flatstone. Jill was a fantastic designer, but she also had a big drinking problem. She had often got drunk at several events in the past, often embarrassing herself and other people.

"That isn't possible." Betty stated firmly. "This guy." She gestured towards Henry. "Is my _boyfriend."_

"B--oyfriend?" Jill remarked surprised. She quickly pulled her arms from around Henry's neck. Jill may have been a drunk, but one thing she was not was a cheat. No, cheaters were people like Jennifer Rockelslimer, who was constantly cheating on her husband and who had even had an affair with Jill's ex fiancé. Cheating was not something that Jill would do, she had been cheated on before and she didn't want to inflict that type of pain on anyone.

When Jill released him, Henry quickly stepped away from her and moved to Betty's side.

"O-hh…I'm sorry." Jill stammered out sincerely. She looked at both Henry and Betty. " I didn't know."

"That's okay." Betty said gently. "Would you like me to call you a cab?"

"I-- I don't want to miss the rest of the show." Jill expressed in a worried tone. "My business pants haven't been showcased yet."

"Actually they have." Betty informed her. "About 15 minutes ago."

A frustrated look came over Jill's face. "W--hat?!" She exclaimed. I can't believe I missed that. I stepped away just for a moment,… I keep missing important stuff!" Tears welled up in her eyes.

A wave of sympathy washed over Betty. She felt sorry for Jill.

"Well, when your pants were being modeled, there was a whole lot of buzz." Betty offered trying to make Jill feel better.

"Buzz is a good thing." Jill commented quietly. "Except when you have too much of a buzz because you're drunk." she paused. "You know, I just…. I need…can you please just call me a cab, what did you say your name was again dear?"

"Betty. Betty Suarez."

"Okay Betty. I would appreciate it if you would call me a cab."

Betty nodded and reached into her purse to grab her cell phone. After she called the cab company she smiled at Jill.

"Okay, Miss Flatstone I called a cab for you. It should be here shortly."

"Thanks dear, I'm going to go wait in the lobby for it oh wait… I left my purse in my seat."

"That's okay I can get it for you." Betty offered. "Where were you sitting?"

"In the front row, my purse is a Clutch PM purse, it's from Louis Vutton's Midnight Limelight line and the color of it is gold."

"Gold purse, got it." Betty said. "I'll go get it for you and I'll bring it out to you in the lobby."

'Thank you." Jill left to go to the lobby and Betty walked back to the fashion show. Once they entered the crowded room, Betty turned to Henry. "It shouldn't take me that long to find Jill's purse You can go back and hang out with Hilda and Justin. I will see you guys in a few minutes."

"Okay." Henry left to find Hilda and Justin and Betty started walking along the front row looking for Jill's gold purse.

"Excuse me," She said quietly as she walked in front of the guests, being careful not to step on any of their feet or to distract them from the show.

She tried to look between some of the chairs, but she still hadn't spotted Jill's purse. _Where could it be? _Betty wondered. She continued to walk, uttering "excuse me" to the guests she was walking past but not paying attention to any of their faces. She spotted a few vacant chairs and thought that Jill's purse might be under one of them. As she walked closer to the chairs, She spotted the gold purse. Betty smiled to herself, crouched down and grabbed the purse underneath the chair. "Got it". "She whispered to herself. She continued to carefully walk down the row but she was having a difficult time seeing. She was coming closer to where a lot of the photographers were at, and their cameras were constantly flashing. All of the flashing lights was making it difficult for Betty to see. All of a sudden she heard someone shout:

"Whoa look at her dress!"

After these words were shouted. The photographers started taking pictures even faster, the lights blinding Betty. She stumbled forward, unable to see and she tripped, falling down hard.

"Oww!" She moaned.

"What in the… Betty… Betty are you okay?!" A familiar voice asked.

Betty raised her head off the floor, and looked up at who was talking to her.

"Gio? What are you doing here?" she inquired surprised.

"Well one of the designers ordered some sandwiches from me for tonight and then invited me to stay to watch the show." He informed her.

Gio reached down and offered Betty his hand. He helped her up and she sat in a empty seat beside him, shaken up from her fall. Gio turned his chair, so that he faced her.

"Betty are you okay?" Gio repeated, concern washing over his face. Instinctively he reached out and softly rubbed her shoulder with his hand. "You took a pretty nasty fall."

"Yeah." Betty stated. She started to relax under Gio's touch. His hand was warm and his touch was soothing. Betty started to feel a little better. "I was looking for a purse for one of the designers and someone yelled and the cameras started flashing really fast. I couldn't see and I tripped and fell." She grinned sheepishly. "I'm okay, thank you for your concern."

Gio smiled at her, his eyes never leaving her face. He noticed that she had a small scratch on one of her cheeks. Again Instinctively he reached out with his other hand and lightly caressed that side of her face. "You have a scratch." He stated simply, his eyes locking into hers.

"Oh, uh…ohh kay" Betty stammered out. Gio was being pretty affectionate with her. A little too affectionate. While Betty thought that it was nice that Gio cared about her, and was concerned about her she couldn't run the risk of Henry seeing them and getting the wrong idea. He was already threatened by Gio, Betty didn't want matters to become worse.

Betty shifted around in her seat. "It's nothing a little ointment can't fix." She remarked nervously.

Gio noticed the change in her demeanor and realized what he was doing. He took his hand off of her face, and gently let go of her shoulder. He mentally berated himself. He had let his emotions get the best of him and in the process had made Betty nervous and uncomfortable. This is not what he wanted at all. He loved her but she didn't love him back. She loved Henry. She wasn't with him, she was with Henry. Gio knew all of this. He had repeated it to himself several times, since he realized he was in love with Betty. Gio knew that his head understood these hard truths, but his heart was having a harder time understanding. And Gio knew that in spite of how he felt he had to keep his emotions in check.

"So," He started, moving his chair back to it's original position. "Has everything been going okay with you lately? With work and your family? Is everyone in your family doing well?"

Betty smiled. "Everything and everyone is fine." She and Gio sat in silence for a couple of minutes, their eyes focused on the fashion show and the last few models that were coming out. The show was winding down, it would be over very shortly.

"Hey Gio, I'm sorry that I took so long I was talking to…" Sage paused when she saw Betty sitting in her seat besides Gio. "Oh Hi." She greeted Betty.

"Hi." Betty got up out of the seat quickly. "Sorry I took your seat." Gio glanced at the two women. He introduced them. "Hey Sage, this is Betty Suarez. She works for Daniel Meade here at Mode. Betty this is Sage Austin, a new and very talented designer."

Sage smiled at Betty. "Oh yes, Gio told me a little bit about you. He said you are very ambitious". Sage shook's Betty's hand. "Nice to meet you."

Betty smiled at Sage. "Nice to meet you too. I love your clothes, they are so classy and elegant."

"Thank You." Sage responded. "Speaking of elegant that is a nice purse that you have there." She looked at the purse in Betty's hand. "The Louis Vutton Clutch PM, very nice."

Betty glanced down at the purse and realized what she was supposed to be doing. "Oh my gosh!" She exclaimed. "Jill!" Betty had forgotten all about Jill Flatstone. After she fell and started talking to Gio, she had forgotten about her. "I'm sorry but I have to go. Nice to meet you Sage. Bye Gio." And with that Betty was gone, rushing to get Jill her purse.

Gio looked at Sage. "That's Betty for you. Constantly on the go, working hard." Sage nodded and sat down in the seat Betty had just vacated. "I definitely understand."

She looked at the stage and then back at Gio. "I apologize for being gone so long. I was talking to some of the press. They were asking me a lot of questions, about my clothes, and my plans for the future. It was really good publicity and I lost track of the time."

"No problem." Gio said. "I'm glad that your clothes are getting a lot of attention, they are really nice. I hope that things go well for you." He told her encouragingly.

"Thanks." Sage was grateful for Gio's support. "Hey…this show is almost over, would you like to grab a cup of coffee afterwards?"

Gio thought for a second. He was sure that Jason was still holding things down at the deli, they didn't get a lot of customers this time of night anyhow. He did let Jason know that he would be gone for awhile. Plus he told Jason to call him if he needed anything. He could spare some time for coffee with Sage.

"Sure I'd like that." He smiled at her.

Sage returned his smile. "Great." The two continued to chatter during the last few minutes of the show.

.


	22. Chapter 22

-1Thanks for the comments and reviews.

**Chapter 22**

"Oh, I love my Rosie child, You got the way to make me happy. You and me we go in style. Crackling Rosie you're a store bought woman. You make me sing like a guitar hummin. So hang on to me girl. Our song keeps running onnnn…."

Sage burst out laughing at Gio's singing. "I wouldn't have pegged you for a Neil Diamond fan." She stated.

Gio grinned and quickly glanced at his side. "My Aunt Thaddea has been a big fan of his for years. When I was younger, I used to visit her and my Uncle Antonio. She was always playing Neil Diamond records whenever I came over. So I kind of got hooked on his music."

The light they were approaching had just turned to red and Gio stopped the car, waiting for the light to change.

"I like a lot of different types of music." Gio continued. "Oldies, Jazz, Rock, R&B…, I guess my motto is if it sounds good listen to it." He glanced at Sage again. "What type of music do you listen to?"

"Mostly Rock, and Country." Sage answered. "I really love Martina McBride and Dolly Parton."

"Working 9 to 5..." Gio began, causing Sage to break out into laughter again. The light turned green and he continued driving and singing. He was taking Sage to a diner that he liked to go to, that served really good coffee and desserts. Gio saw the street that the diner was on and he drove on it, and arrived at the diner.

"Here we are." Gio stopped the van, and they stepped out and went inside the diner. They sat at the counter, and an older woman in her 50's came over to them with a pad in her hand. She smiled at Gio and Sage. "Hey Gio. What can I get you guys tonight?"

"Hey Eileen." Gio greeted the woman warmly. "I would like a cup of coffee and a slice of Apple pie. A la mode." He turned to Sage. "What would you like Sage?"

"A cup of coffee as well and do you have key lime pie?"

Eileen smiled. "Of course we do and it is delicious."

"Okay I'll have a slice of that." Eileen nodded and went to get their orders.

Gio turned slightly on his stool to look at Sage. "My little sister Antonella loves Key Lime pie." He smiled. "She has a sweet tooth."

"So does my older brother, Paul." Sage told him. "He loves anything with sugar… candy, cookies, cake you name it. Oddly enough he's never had a cavity."

Eileen bought out their pie and coffee, and Sage and Gio continued to talk about their families as well as work, enjoying their pie and each other's company.


	23. Chapter 23

-1**Chapter 23**

"Happy Birthday!" Her family called out when Betty entered the kitchen. A smile broke out on Betty's face. "We know it's not actually until Sunday, but you're not going to be here then so we wanted to wish you a happy birthday before you go away with Henry." Hilda stated. "Thank you." Betty said graciously, accepting a plate of Huevos Rancheros and a glass of orange juice from her dad. She sat down at the table.

"Here is a list of attractions that you and Henry can visit while you are in Philadelphia." Justin handed Betty the list. "That was thoughtful of you Justin, Thank You." Betty took the list and looked at it. "I definitely want to visit the Liberty Bell and some of these other places also look really interesting."

Ignacio grabbed a plate of food and sat down with everyone. "So why did you guys decide to go to Philadelphia for your birthday?" He asked curiously.

"Well," Betty put the list down on the table. "Originally Henry wanted to take me to Jamaica, but his baby is due soon and I didn't want him to spend that much money on me." "But…" Betty grabbed a napkin from the napkin holder. "Henry still wanted to take me somewhere for my birthday. So I suggested some place closer to home, Philadelphia." "It's not that far from here, we found a good price on a hotel and there are a lot of things to do there. Plus neither one of us has been there before. I think our trip to Philadelphia is going to be fun." Betty picked up her fork and took a bite out of her Huevos Rancheros.

Ignacio smiled. "That was very considerate of you hija. And Philadelphia is a fun place to visit. You and Henry are going to enjoy yourselves." He reached for the salt shaker. "Hey dad not too much okay?" Betty stated in a concerned tone. "Remember what the doctor said."

"Don't worry, I put salt substitute in there." Hilda assured Betty.

Ignacio shook his head. "Salt Substitute! Ay, Ay, Ay, Now _that _is going to kill me." Everyone laughed and continued eating their breakfast together. Afterwards her family gave Betty her gifts. Betty received a new dress and a pair of shoes from Hilda, a book by one of her favorite authors from Ignacio and a couple of Cd's from Justin. Betty thanked everyone, said her goodbyes, grabbed her suitcase and headed to Henry's apartment.

Betty was so excited to be going on this trip with Henry. It was their first trip away together, and Betty was happy that it was to celebrate her birthday. Betty was excitedly thinking about all the things that her and Henry would do in Philadelphia as she walked through the hallway of Henry's apartment building. She made her way to his door, dragging her suitcase behind her. Once she got there, she stopped, knocked and called out. "Henry the birthday girl is here!" She heard the sound of feet moving and the door opened. Henry smiled, leaned down and kissed Betty on the lips. "Come in." Betty entered the apartment bringing her suitcase with her. "So are you ready to go?" she asked cheerfully.

"Yes, I am." Henry went and got his suitcase from the middle of the room. "Let's go." Henry and Betty grabbed their suitcases and went outside to Henry's car. Henry put both suitcases inside his trunk and they both got inside. After they buckled up Henry started the car and they began their drive to Philadelphia.

"So how has your birthday been so far?" Henry asked. "Great!" Betty exclaimed happily. "My family gave me some really nice gifts. Hilda got me this really pretty dress, it's black, and kind of long, it's lovely."

Henry grinned. "Maybe I will get to see you in it later."

Betty smiled. "Yeah." Betty lightly touched his arm with her hand. "Henry, I am so glad to be spending my birthday with you."

"And I am happy to be spending time with the woman I love." Henry responded.

"I love you too Henry." Betty stated happily. The two continued to talk and listen to the radio on their way to Philadelphia.


	24. Chapter 24

-1**Chapter 24**

Gio went up to the receptionist desk at Mode with a couple of bags in his hand. One was a small paper bag. the other one was a big gift bag. He was kind of nervous. Gio had come to Mode to give Betty some gifts for her birthday. Betty had mentioned her birthday a couple of months ago and Gio had remembered it. He knew it was actually Sunday but he had promised to hang out with his Uncle Antonio and some of his friends that lived in New Jersey on that day. He and Antonio were going to drive down to New Jersey Sunday. They would probably would be gone all day.

Gio probably wouldn't have time to give Betty her gifts then. Even if Gio wasn't going to New Jersey, he had no idea, what Betty's plans were for her birthday. She could be spending the whole day with Henry and he might not see her anyhow. So Gio had decided to give Betty her gifts a couple of days early, while she was at work.

Amanda finished talking on the phone and looked at Gio. "Well if it isn't my G. What are you doing here?" she inquired. "Oh wait a minute you must be here to save my life again." She crouched down behind her desk. "Tell me when the danger is over." She whispered. A perplexed look came across Gio's face. "I'm not here to save your life Amanda. I'm here to give Betty some gifts for her birthday."

_"Oh." _Amanda stood up straight. "Betty's not here." She informed him. "Daniel gave her the day off for her birthday. Lucky heifer." Amanda scowled. "I've been working here for a few years now and I have never been given days off for my birthday. I have faked being sick twice just to get it off."

Gio nodded. "Oh well, thanks for the information. I guess I'll give them to her later. Bye"

Gio turned and started to walk away. "Gio!" Amanda called out. He turned back to look at her. "Later would be like Tuesday. Betty went away with Henry for the weekend. She also has Monday off and she won't be back at work until Tuesday." Amanda grabbed a file off her desk and started filing her nails.

"Okay, Thanks." Gio walked away, feeling a little disappointed. He had wanted to give Betty her gifts today. He had wanted to see the expression on her face, when she saw what he had gotten her. Now he'd have to wait a few days to give them to her because she was on a romantic get away with Henry. Gio walked outside and opened the door to his van. He put both bags he had been carrying on the passenger's side.

_I guess I'll have to eat that Chicken Salad Sandwich_. Gio thought to himself. _I'll make Betty another one Tuesday. _Gio walked around to the driver's seat, got inside buckled up and drove back to his deli.


	25. Chapter 25

-1**Chapter 25**

"I've always wanted to see this." Betty admitted looking through a glass chamber at the Liberty Bell.

"Well, I'm glad that you got a chance to see it." Henry wrapped his arms around Betty. It was Saturday morning, their second day in Philadelphia and they were looking at the Liberty Bell along with a group of other people. After Betty and Henry had gotten up that morning, they had a nice breakfast, and then they had set out sightseeing. First they had taken a tour of Independence Hall. They had learned a lot of interesting facts when they were touring the building and they had enjoyed the classic Georgian architecture. After they toured Independence Hall they had went across the street to The Liberty Bell Center.

They had stood in a long line of people and then went through a security checkpoint. They then went to a lobby area, where they viewed a video presentation about the history and creation of the Bell. Afterwards they went to the glass chamber where the Liberty Bell was located. Betty and Henry stayed at the Liberty Bell Center for a while longer discussing the Bell and the history of it and then they continued their sightseeing. They saw some other sites in the Independence Historical National Park, including Congress Hall, Declaration House, and the Portrait Gallery in the Second Bank. A little after two they went to get a late lunch.

"Oh this is so good." Betty commented after she had taken a bite of her cheese steak sandwich."

"Un huh." Henry mumbled enjoying his cheese steak as well. The couple finished eating and then went to the Philadelphia Zoo for a little while. While there they saw Cheetahs Hippos, Zebras, Elephants, Meerkats, and other animals.

"Okay it says those are Sumatran Orangutans." Betty commented, looking up at the animals.

"Sumatran Orangutans are one of the most endangered Primates." Henry informed her. "A few years ago in 2002 scientists estimated there were about 3500 of them living in the wild. Over the past few years the numbers have dropped even lower. One of the biggest reasons for this is because the forests are being cut down to make room for Oil and Palm plantations. It's a big threat to these animals."

Betty turned to look at Henry. "Wow, I did not know that. Poor things."

"Yeah, the show that I saw about them on the National Geographic Channel was pretty interesting." Betty and Henry watched the Orangutans for a while longer and then went to look at some more animals. They didn't get a chance to see as many animals as they wanted to because they had arrived at the Zoo a couple of hours before closing time.

After they left the Zoo, Betty and Henry went to one of the theaters in the city to see a show. Then they had dinner, and went shopping to get gifts for their family and friends. After they finished shopping it had gotten kind of late, and Henry and Betty decided to call it a night and go back to the hotel. On their way back Betty hooked her arm through Henry's.

"I had a lot of fun today." She stated with a smile across her face. Henry looked down at her, also breaking out into a smile. "I'm glad and tomorrow we are going to have a lot more fun. I want to make sure that your birthday is extra special. There are a lot more places we can visit. There is this really nice restaurant that I want to take you to for dinner, and maybe we could go to one of the really nice nightclubs here. And wait until you see what gifts I got you for your birthday. I think you'll like them."

Betty's smile became wider. "All of that sounds great Henry. But just being able to spend my birthday with you is more than good enough for me."

Henry reached down to give Betty a long kiss, and they continued to make their way back to the hotel, anticipating all the fun they would have the next day for Betty's birthday.


	26. Chapter 26

-1Thanks for the review and comments

**Chapter 26**

Betty stepped out of the bathroom wearing the new dress and shoes that Hilda had given her. She was feeling really good and she was excited about today. It was her birthday. She was turning 24. Betty was looking forward to spending time with Henry today. "Hey Henry…" She called out but stopped when she saw that Henry was talking on his cell phone with someone. "Is she really Nicole?" He asked the person on the other end of the phone with a worried look on his face. "What is she doing in New York?… She didn't even tell me she was coming. Okay.. Okay. I'll be there as soon as I can."

Henry hung up and went over to the dresser. He opened it and quickly started throwing his clothes in the suitcase. He closed his suitcase and looked up at Betty. Henry went over to her and gave her a hug and a kiss on the lips. "Happy Birthday." He said. "Thank You." Betty replied. "But Henry what's wrong? Why are you packing?" Betty asked. "Betty we have to go back to New York. Charlie's there and she went into labor this morning." He informed her. A surprised look came across Betty's face. "What?!" She exclaimed. "Charlie went into labor?!"

"Yes, her friend called and told me. Charlie is in New York visiting her for a few days. I didn't even know that she was coming… but anyway this morning she went into labor. She's in the hospital right now." Henry rushed past Betty and went into the bathroom to get his toothbrush as well as other toiletries that he had brought. He finished packing and looked at Betty, with an apologetic look on his face.

"Betty I know today is your birthday and we were going to finish celebrating, but my child is being born today, and I need to be there for her. Charlie and the baby need me." Betty nodded, seeing the pleading look on Henry' face. "I understand Henry. We can celebrate my birthday later. Let's go back to New York." Betty packed really quickly, the couple checked out of the hotel and they got in the car and headed back to New York.

"Whoa Henry slow down!" Betty told him when she noticed how fast he was driving. "I don't want us to get into an accident or for you to get a speeding ticket." She cautioned him.

"I'm sorry." Henry apologized. "I'm just so worried out the baby, she isn't even supposed to be due until a few more weeks. What if something is wrong?" Henry asked. He quickly glanced at Betty with a worried look on his face.

"Everything is going to be okay Henry." Betty assured him lightly rubbing his arm. She spent the rest of the drive back to New York talking to him and reassuring him that everything was going to be okay.

When Henry arrived at the hospital in New York they rushed inside. Henry asked what floor Charlie was on and him and Betty went there. They were surprised to see Charlie calmly sitting in the hallway with her friend Nicole. Henry went over to her. "Charlie!" He exclaimed. "I thought that you were in labor." Charlie shook her head. "No I was experiencing Braxton Hicks contractions. It was a false alarm."

Henry leaned against the wall and let out a deep breath. He straightened up and looked at Charlie. Henry put his hand on her shoulder. "I'm glad everything is okay with the baby Charlie. I was so scared." He admitted. "What else did the doctor say?" Henry and Charlie continued talking about what the doctor said, and also about the baby's due date.

As Betty watched them talk some thoughts went through her mind. Henry and Charlie were about to a bring a child into this world, a little person. Someone they had created together, someone that they would be responsible for. Someone that they would always be connected by. All of those thoughts were overwhelming to Betty. She couldn't imagine how overwhelmed Charlie and Henry were.

"How long are you staying In New York?" She heard Henry ask Charlie. "Six more days. Why?" Charlie questioned. "I want you and the baby to stay with me for the rest of your time here." He stated.

Charlie looked at him and then at Betty and frowned. "I don't know Henry…"

"Charlie, please." Henry pleaded with her. "I want to be near you and the baby. In case you need me for something or if you actually do go into labor early. I want to be there Charlie, for you and the baby. Please let me be there for you." Charlie nodded giving in to Henry's pleading. "Okay, Henry I'll stay with you for the rest of my time here, but my stuff is at Nicole's."

"Then we'll go get your stuff." Henry reached down and helped Charlie out of her chair. They along with Nicole and Betty started walking down the hall. As they were walking Henry turned to Betty with an apologetic look on his face. "I promise we will celebrate your birthday later, but I need to get Charlie settled in at my place." Betty nodded. "I understand. We'll celebrate my birthday later. You can drop me off at home and I'll talk to you later okay?" Henry nodded and everyone went outside and got in Henry's car.

As they were driving the way to Betty's house, Charlie called out in the backseat. "Hey Henry can we go to the store? I'm hungry. I want to get some ice cream, wheat crackers and cheese and oh yeah some three musketeers bars. I've been craving them throughout my pregnancy." Henry nodded and drove to the nearest store. When he got there everyone got out including Betty who hadn't eaten breakfast that morning and was hungry. While she was walking down the aisle in the store looking for the Honey Buns she saw Gio grabbing a lot of snacks. He looked up at her when he saw her approaching him.

"Hi, Gio." Betty greeted him.

"Betty!" He called out surprised. "Hi. I thought you were going to be out of town all weekend."

"I had to come back early. Something came up."

"Oh well… Happy Birthday." Gio grinned at her.

Betty smiled at him. "Thank you. I'm surprised you remembered."

"Well you have only mentioned it over the past couple of months three hundred times."

Betty rolled her eyes. She pointed to all of the food in his hands. "You got the munchies?" She teased.

Gio laughed. "Kind of. My Uncle and I are going to New Jersey today. I'm just getting some snacks for the road. Jersey is not that far away, but I'm an eater and he's a _big _eater. We have to stack up on the snacks you know."

Just then Nicole came around the corner. "Hey Betty… Are you almost ready? Charlie and Henry have gotten everything that they needed and they are back in the car already. We're waiting on you."

"Yes, I'm almost ready." Betty said, quickly grabbing a Honey Bun. "I just need to pay and I'll be out." Nicole nodded and walked away. "Well I've got to go, you have a good time with your Uncle, Gio. Bye." Betty started to walk away.

"Bye Betty." Gio smiled as he watched her walk away. He didn't know why she had came back early but he was glad that he had gotten the chance to see her and wish her a Happy Birthday on her actual birthday. Gio thought that maybe he would have time to give Betty her gifts today if he came home from New Jersey with Antonio early enough. Gio continued his shopping and got some drinks for him and Antonio for their drive to New Jersey .


	27. Chapter 27

-1**Chapter 27**

Gio parked his car outside of Betty's house. He looked at his watch. It was 7:12 pm. A little while ago he had just gotten home from New Jersey. After he dropped his Uncle Antonio off at his house he had went home to grab the gift bag that had most of Betty's gifts in it. He decided that he was going to give her the gifts tonight. After Gio left his apartment he went to his deli, greeted Jason, checked up on things and made Betty her last gift, a Chicken Salad sandwich. Gio then drove to Betty's house. Now he sat outside of her house in his van thinking to himself.

_Maybe I shouldn't go in. _He thought to himself. _Maybe Betty isn't even Home. Maybe she's out celebrating her birthday with Henry_, _maybe she doesn't want to see me. _Gio sat in the van a little while longer thinking. Finally he decided that since he was there he might as well see if Betty was at home. Gio opened up the door of his van and grabbed the bags from the passenger's side. He got out, locked the door and walked up to Betty's front door. He rang the doorbell. He heard the rustling of feet and then the door opened.

"Gio!" Betty exclaimed surprised. "What are you doing here?" She asked.

"Well, it's your birthday and I came to bring you some gifts."

"Oh, Okay well… come in." Gio stepped inside, closing the door behind him. Betty led him over to the living room and she sat on the couch and he sat across from her in a chair. Betty looked at the bags in his hands. "You know Gio you didn't have to get me anything." She remarked.

Gio handed her the big gift bag. "I wanted to."

Betty took the bigger bag and looked inside. "Oh wow… aren't these some new skirts from Sage's Austin's line?"

Gio nodded and smiled. "She helped me pick them out for you. She even gave me a discount."

"They are lovely." Betty commented reaching into the bag to pull the three skirts out. She laid them on the couch beside her. She was about to fold the bag up when she saw that there was something else inside. "Hey, you got me a new journal!" She remarked happily. "I needed one. My old one is almost filled up because of all the writing I've done for my writing class. Thank you."

"By the way how's that going?" Gio asked.

"Pretty good." Betty answered. "I'm learning how to become a better writer. Plus I have written about some pretty interesting subjects." Betty paused. "Hey what's this?" Betty pulled out the last gift in the gift bag, a white envelope. She opened it up and her eyes lit up when she saw what it was.

"Broadway tickets for the play Tarah's Three daughters!" She exclaimed. "I really wanted to see this play but I thought that tickets were sold out. How did you get tickets? How did you even know I wanted to see this play?" Gio smiled at Betty's excitement. "You told me how much you wanted to see it like a couple of months ago. A little while after you told me, I bought the tickets early before they sold out."

"Really?" Betty asked touched by Gio's thoughtfulness.. "Thanks I really wanted to see this play. I appreciate you getting the tickets for me, thanks Gio, thanks for all the gifts."

"Wait there is one more." Gio, reached across to give her the small brown bag he had brought with him. "Another gift?!" Betty asked incredulously. Betty took the bag and looked inside. She smiled. "Of course. A Chicken Salad sandwich thanks. I had dinner a little while ago, but I will eat this later." Betty got up and went into the kitchen to put her sandwich inside the refrigerator. She came back out, and sat back down on the couch. She and Gio looked at each other for a few moments, and then Gio spoke. "So you came back early from your trip, Amanda told me you would be gone until Tuesday, is everything okay?"

Betty nodded. "Henry and I went to Philadelphia for my birthday, we were going to come back Monday, but this morning he got a phone call and we thought that Charlie had gone into labor. It turned out to be Braxton Hicks contractions. It was a false alarm. But everything is okay with Charlie and the baby." She assured him.

"That's good." Gio stated. He paused. "So… are you and Henry going out tonight for your birthday?" He asked curiously.

Betty shook her head "No. After Henry took Charlie home he had to run some errands for her and that took a while. He called me after he was done and we decided to finish celebrating my birthday some other day. Tonight I am going to probably stay in and watch a movie."

An idea came into Gio's head. "You could do that or… you could go out with me." He suggested.

Betty was surprised at Gio's suggestion. Was he asking her out on a date? No he couldn't be doing that. Or was he?

"You mean like a da--" She began.

"Like two friends going out to celebrate your birthday." Gio quickly stated.

"Oh. Well… what would we do?" Betty inquired.

Gio thought for a moment. "Well…oh I know! We could go to that upscale Dance club Champagne and Roses. I never did take the owner up on her offer to go there for free for one night for me and some friends. We could order free drinks and dance. I know you like to dance."

"I do like to dance." Betty admitted.

"We could go there then. I could call up a couple of my friends and we could all go there together. It would be fun. Better than staying home watching a movie on TV. What do you say Betty?"

Betty thought for a moment about Gio's offer. It did sound fun, and it wouldn't be a date, they would just be hanging out together with other people. It would be a lot more fun than sitting home watching a movie on TV.

After thinking about Gio's offer more Betty came to a decision. "Okay, Gio I'll go to the club with you." She said.

"Great!" Gio smiled. He was happy that he was going to get to spend more time with Betty. He hoped that tonight would be fun.


	28. Chapter 28

-1Thanks for the review.

**Chapter 28 **

"Here you go, I bought you a margarita. I told the bartender to puts lots of salt in it for you." Gio handed Betty the glass.

"Thank You." Betty said taking a sip. "Wow, this is very salty. But it's good." Gio took a sip of his beer and looked around him. "This place is really packed tonight." He observed.

"It is." Betty put her glass down. "But it is one of the most popular Dance clubs in the city. A lot of people that work at Mode go here a lot. They say they love the atmosphere here."

"It is a pretty nice place." Gio commented looking at the beautifully decorated dance club. "Plus they play really good music here." Gio noticed all the happy people dancing together. "Hey Betty do you want to d-…" He started to ask but was interrupted.

"Hey Gio this place is awesome." Gio's friend Kyle commented sitting down at the table with Betty and Gio. "I can't believe you got us in here for free." Kyle put his beer on the table and smiled cockily at Gio. "I already got six chicks phone numbers tonight."

"They were all desperate and lonely looking chicks." Joked Gio's other friend Terrence who had also come over to the table and sat down with everyone.

Kyle turned to him. "Oh, shut up man you are just jealous. You can't hit on hot chicks, because you're too scared your girlfriend will find out. We all know she has eyes all over the city. If you so much as look at another chick in the wrong way, she'll find out. And she will forbid you from ever going out and having fun again."

Terrence shook his head. "You are over exaggerating _again_. Jade and I have an understanding. I love her, I'm committed to her. She's enough for me and she knows that. She doesn't have to have eyes all over the city, to know that I am going to remain faithful to her. That is what a serious relationship is all about man." Terrence took a sip of his cranberry juice. "Of course you wouldn't know that because you haven't had a serious girlfriend in six years."

"Man Shut up!" Kyle exclaimed. Gio burst out laughing and Betty smiled. Gio had invited his two best friends Terrence and Kyle to hang out with Betty and him and they were quite interesting. Terrence was an attractive, intelligent African American man who Betty had instantly liked. He seemed nice and thoughtful and he was an accountant for a big corporation in the city. Betty had liked Gio's other friend Kyle as well. Kyle was a very tall, kind of cute, blond haired man, with a smile that alternated from being goofy looking to cocky looking. He also seemed intelligent and was a chef in one of the city's upscale restaurants. Kyle was very outspoken, he said whatever was on his mind, and also seemed like he was a fun-loving guy. The two guys were very nice and funny and Betty was enjoying their company.

Kyle looked at Terrence's glass. "Only _you_ would come to a nice Dance Club and drink cranberry juice. There is no alcohol in that right?" He questioned.

Terrence shook his head. "None."

"You're a loser."

"Hey someone needs to stay sober tonight and be the designated driver." Terrence informed him. "We already know that _you_ are not going to do it." He then looked at Betty and Gio and gave them a charming smile. "And I'm sure that Gio and Betty want to drink to celebrate tonight, it is after all Betty's birthday. Gio and his lady should enjoy themselves tonight."

Betty blushed after Terrence had called her Gio's "lady".

"I definitely want to have fun tonight." She commented bashfully smiling at him. "And these drinks are really good." Betty picked up her glass and took a few more sips of her margarita.

As Gio watched her drink he smiled inwardly. Of course Terrence had been mistaken about her being his lady but it still felt pretty good to be spending time with her tonight. She seemed to be enjoying herself so far, and she was getting along with his friends. That made Gio really happy.

"Hey hot Brunette dancing on the floor by herself." Kyle pointed out his eyes drawn to a very pretty brunette girl dancing in the middle of the dance floor by herself. She seemed really engrossed in the music and was moving around freely. "She looks like she could use a dance partner. Someone like me." Kyle rose from the table.

"Watch him get rejected." Terrence predicted.

"Ah you're just jealous, that you can't dance with her. Or else Jade will find out and put you on punishment." Kyle retorted. He looked at everyone at the table. "I will see you guys later." He said and walked to the center of the dance floor and started talking to the brunette. They talked for a few moments and then started dancing together.

"She must be really drunk." Terrence joked. Betty and Gio laughed. Terrence smiled at them and then looked around. "Hey I think I see some people that I work with. I think I'll go talk to them. If you guys will excuse me." He got up and left the table, going over to another one and talking to a group of people. Betty and Gio were all alone. Betty finished her drink, put her glass down and looked at Gio. She smiled at him. "I like your friends." She told him. "They are nice and funny. How long have you known them?" she asked.

"We all met in high school and have been close ever since." Gio informed her.

"That's really nice." Betty stated. She looked down at her hands and up at Gio.

Gio smiled at her. "Did you want something else to drink?" He asked. "I saw that they have several different flavors of martinis on the menu. Pomegranate, Apple, Chocolate,… did you want to try one of them or all of them?" He offered. "Or did you want something to eat? Remember everything is free. I saw the owner tonight and she told the bartender to give us anything that we wanted."

Betty smiled at him. "Maybe later."

Gio nodded at her and looked around. A really good song was playing. "Hey Betty do you want to dance?" He asked.

Betty thought for a moment. _A Dance couldn't hurt. _She thought to herself. _This is a Dance club and people do dance at a Dance club. It wouldn't hurt me to dance with Gio_. "Okay, I'll dance with you." She told him.

Gio smiled at her. "Great." They got up from the table and he grabbed her hand leading her to the dance floor. He noticed that her hand was very soft and warm. The music was loud and they both started to dance together, moving their bodies to the rhythm of the music and dancing in sync with each other.

As they danced together Gio couldn't help but smile. Betty was a decent dancer and he thought that she looked sexy as she danced to the music, swaying her body and having a good time.

"Not bad Suarez." He commented smiling at her. "You look just like a video vixen." He teased her.

Betty made a face at him. "_Sure._" She continued to dance with him, and as their bodies moved to the music, she realized that she was having a good time. Gio was a good dancer. A much better dancer than Henry Betty had realized. Betty loved Henry but he was not the best dancer. Not even when he had danced at the club that one time, when they had went out with Gio and Hilda. He had tried to dance for her in front of everyone, and Betty had been touched by his effort. But he still wasn't a very good dancer. Not nearly as good as Gio who had more rhythm and who just looked more natural when he danced.

"Do you remember the first time we danced?" Gio asked her over the music which had gotten louder.

"What did you say?" Betty asked not quite sure what he had said.

"The first time we danced?" Gio repeated a little louder. "We were at your house, remember? I had helped you move some stuff and then I got you to dance with me."

"Oh yeah, I remember." Betty recalled.

"It was something like this." Gio started dancing around Betty repeating the way he had danced at her house. He grabbed her hand and put his arm around her waist. They moved in step together, and then he spun her around quickly like he had done at her house that time. A big smile broke out on Betty's face when Gio dipped her. She laughed and he gently pulled her up.

"Yeah I remember that dance. It was fun." She admitted to him.

"Fun indeed." Gio remarked smiling. He and Betty continued dancing on the floor, talking, laughing and having a good time together.


	29. Chapter 29

-1**Chapter 29**

"Wow this place is packed." Amanda commented her eyes scanning the Dance club Champagne and Roses. "And on a Sunday night. I wonder how many of these heathens went to church today."

"Most of them." Marc speculated. "Let's go get that table over there." He suggested showing Amanda a table near the corner of the room. "We can watch all the action from over there." They went over to the table and sat down.

"I wonder how many hotties are here, I so need a man." Amanda admitted.

"Wow desperate much?" Marc asked.

"Shut up Marc." Amanda scowled narrowing her eyes at him. "It's been a while…"

"You don't need to go into details Mandy."

Amanda pouted. "You know you're supposed to be my friend, and listen to all my problems including my man troubles. I listen to your problems and boy are they ridiculous. I need you to listen to me right now."

"Oh alright." Marc reached over and put his hand on Amanda's. "Tell me about it Mandy."

Amanda smiled at him. "Oh, Marc I guess I'm kind of well…" She paused and looked at him like she was hesitating to say what she was going to say next.

"_Lonely_." She whispered the last word and Marc barely heard her. A confused look came across his face as he registered what she had said. Then he spoke.

"_Lonely_?" He questioned. "Amanda Tanning doesn't suffer from being _lonely. _I mean that is something that you have make fun of people for." He leaned towards Amanda. "Are you really _lonely_?" He questioned.

Amanda nodded, an embarrassed look on her face. "I am. I mean, I do have people in my life that care about me. There is you and my dad, Gene Simmons and my new family and I have other friends. But I still feel _lonely. _I'm not sure what it is… I think that my heart aches to be loved, you know romantically. I know I've said it before, but I mean it now more than ever. I really do want to find the man of my dreams. Or at least a man from one of my dreams." She looked at Marc as if she was looking for guidance from him. He was quiet and she continued. "I want to experience that love, you know the type of love that you see on soap operas, television shows, movies, you know all that lovey dovey crap. I want to that type of love to consume me, I mean not to the point to where I want to jump off a bridge or anything, but I want it to be strong and intense. Very intense." Amanda stopped and looked at Marc again, waiting for him to say something.

"Oh my, how… Shakespearean." Marc replied. "Look Mandy if you are in that much need of a man, I'm sure we can find you someone…"

"Not just any man, Marc. A special man. A man that is going to make me feel all the things that I want to feel. Maybe _the_ man." She looked at Marc with an anguished look on her face. "What should I do Marc, how do I find a wonderful man and experience this great love that I want to experience?"

"E Harmony dot com." Marc suggested. "Or maybe Chemistry dot com. Either one will do, they will hook you up with several matches. Don't worry Mandy. You will be hooked up with you future babies daddy in no time. Oh wait Linda says you can't have kids…"

"Marc!" Amanda shook her head. "No, I'm not looking for my dream guy on the _internet_." She exclaimed disdainfully. "The internet is good for a lot of things. Shopping, downloading music, blackmailing people with embarrassing videos, but finding a soul mate… no, that is not going to work for me."

"Well you're awfully picky for a desperate woman aren't you?" Marc remarked. "Okay we won't look on the internet for your "dream man". He promised using his fingers to make the quotations marks. "We'll figure something else out I promise. But for the mean time, can we just enjoy ourselves tonight. This club is really awesome and I want to have fun, can we have fun tonight Mandy?" He asked giving her a puppy dog look. "We can start on your quest for a soul mate later. Let's get some drinks and dance."

Amanda nodded. "Okay Marc tonight we have fun. Later we begin our search for my dream guy." She grabbed her purse. "Let's go over to the bar and gets some drinks. I hear they have good chocolate martinis here."

"Oh chocolate." Marc said happily. He and Amanda got up from the table and went over to the bar to get their martinis. As they were drinking they looked out on the dance floor and watched the people that were dancing. They both noticed that Betty and Gio were out on the dance floor dancing and laughing together. Marc and Amanda both noticed how happy they looked together.

"Well, I guess Betty finally decided to cheat on the nerd with Mr. Bologna." Marc commented taking a sip of his martini. "It's about time."

Amanda leaned against the bar, her drink in her hand. "You know they actually look happy together. I mean Betty still looks frumpy of course, but she looks happy with him. She always seems to find love." Amanda sighed.

"You will too." Marc assured her looking at her.

"I hope so." Amanda expressed wistfully. Just then she felt someone bump into her and some of her drink splashed onto her dress. Amanda scowled. She turned around to see who had bumped into her. "Hey watch it!" She warned looking at the tough looking tall blond woman who had bumped into her.

"Oh my mistake." The woman said looking Amanda up and down. "I guess I better be a little more careful, wouldn't want a drink to ruin your pretty little dress." She commented nastily. "Where did get that dress? The Thrift store?"

Amanda frowned and grabbed a napkin and tried to wipe off the drink on her dress. She managed to get some of it off, but there was still a stain there. "Ugh, my dress. is stained." She looked up at the woman with an angry look on her face. "Thanks for ruining my dress." She stated sarcastically. "And no I didn't get it from the Thrift store. But I bet that's where you got _your _dress. Oh wait, that's too high class for you. You probably got your's from the Dollar store. That's a place that will fit the budget of a cheap tramp like yourself."

"Why you nasty witch." The blond woman stepped closer to Amanda, an angry look on her face. Amanda stood up straight and moved closer as well and looked the woman in her face.

"Takes one to know one." Amanda retorted not backing down. Just then Betty and Gio had made their way over to the bar. They had been dancing for a while, and had decided to take a break and get some more drinks. As they approached the bar they noticed Amanda staring down a tall looking woman. They were behind the woman and couldn't see her face, but they could see how close Amanda was to her and how angry she looked. "I wonder what that is about." Gio asked curiously. "We probably don't want to know." Betty stated. The bartender came over to them. "What can I get you guys?" He asked them.

Gio turned to Betty. "What would you like Betty?" He asked.

"A Pomegranate Martini." Betty requested.

"Alright, we'll have two Pomegranate Martinis then." Gio ordered. The bartender nodded and went to make their drinks. After he finished making them, he brought the drinks to Betty and Gio. They began to drink and talk.

Very close to them Amanda and the tall blond were still trading insults and staring each other down. Finally Marc reached out and put a hand on Amanda's arm. "Mandy stop. It's not worth it. Just let it go." He cautioned her.

"But Marc…" Amanda started to protest.

"Mandy _let it go_." Marc repeated giving her a warning look.

"Fine then. I don't need this anyhow." Amanda stepped away from the blond and turned to face Marc. The blond woman turned to the bartender. "I'll have a beer, just give me a bottle and a glass." The bartender nodded and did as she requested.

"Whoa, Mandy it looked like you were going to get into a fight tonight." Marc stated. "And that would have been one fight I don't think you would have won. That chick looks tough."

Amanda shrugged nonchalantly as if the exchange with the other woman was not that big of a deal. "I've gotten into fights with people before Marc. I can take care of myself. Some of the women haven't been as rough looking as that chick was. Nor did they resemble a giraffe like she did. Boy did she look like an angry giraffe. I'll think I'll call her angry giraffe tramp." Amanda said the last few sentences loudly and started laughing. The tall woman had heard everything that she had said and was livid.

She picked up her beer bottle and moved closer to Amanda. She started to raise the bottle contemplating about whether or not she should hit Amanda in the head with it. She finally decided that she was going to hit her. Gio who had been talking to Betty had looked up and saw the woman pick up her bottle and move closer to Amanda. When he saw her slowly raise the bottle in the air, he jumped out of his seat and ran over to her. Betty turned around in surprise wondering what Gio was doing. And then she saw the woman with the raised beer bottle.

"Amanda watch out!" Gio called as the tall woman prepared to hit Amanda in the head with the bottle. Amanda turned around just as Gio had reached out and grabbed the bottle away from the woman.

"What did do you that for?" The woman scowled at him. "I was going to teach this witch a lesson." She laughed nastily. "Maybe even knock some sense into her."

Gio gave the woman a harsh look. "And go to jail for assault?" He questioned. "Yeah, That would have been _some_ lesson."

The lady frowned at him and picked up her purse. "Whatever. Had you not been here, I would have put glass in this piece of trashes skull." She pointed to Amanda. "She got lucky." She turned and walked away throwing back one more threatening look at Amanda.

Amanda looked at Gio with a shocked look on her face. She was quiet for a few moments and then she spoke. "Wow, that whacko was really going to hit me in the head. She could have really hurt me. You saved me. Thank you." As Amanda processed what had just happened, she realized something. _Gio had saved her again_! Just like her psychic Linda had said that he would. She turned to Marc. "Marc!" She exclaimed. "Gio saved me again! Just like Linda predicted that he would."

Marc nodded, also realizing what had happened. "Wow. That is two for two. You've done it again salami man."

Gio shook his head at the two of them and their comments. _What was this psychic nonsense they kept talking about? _he wondered.

"Listen." he began looking at Marc and Amanda. "I'm not quite sure what this psychic stuff is that you're talking about and I don't know any Linda. I know you mentioned something about it before, but …" He turned to Amanda. "I'm just glad you are okay. You have to be careful you know. I know you seem kind of feisty, but you have to be careful. Sometimes if you mess with the wrong people you could end up getting hurt. _Seriously_ hurt. That lady you were dealing with tonight was no joke. She could have really hurt you Amanda." Gio looked at Amanda, a concerned expression on his face. "Be more careful next time about who you choose to pick your battles with. Better yet try not to fight at all if you can? Okay?" Amanda nodded taking in his big brother tone and noting the seriousness in his voice.

"Alright. I guess I'll see you guys later. Take care." Gio left Marc and Amanda and went back over to Betty who had saw everything. "Hey." He greeted her. He sat back down and smiled at her apologetically. "Sorry about that."

Betty shook her head. "No don't be. I saw everything. You saved Amanda from being hurt Gio. You did the right thing." She turned on her seat a little so that she could face him more. "You know people do have to be careful about the type of things that they do." She stated thoughtfully. "Sometimes it is better to let things go and not pick unnecessary fights. It could save people a lot less trouble."

Gio nodded. "Well said."

Betty and Gio talked some more and ordered a couple of more drinks. After they were done, they went back out on the dance floor and danced some more, having a good time and enjoying each other's company.


	30. Chapter 30

-1**Chapter 30**

"I had a really good time tonight Gio." Betty told him when they had gotten to her doorstep. It was pretty late and Terrence had driven to her house to drop her off. Gio had decided to walk her to her door before Terrence drove him and Kyle home.

Gio smiled at Betty. "I'm glad that you did Betty. You only turn 24 once and I am glad that you had some fun tonight."

Betty nodded returning Gio's smile. "Yeah, I definitely had fun with you guys tonight. And I also appreciate all the gifts that you bought me. They are really nice. I'm definitely going to start using my new journal soon . I am going to have some upcoming assignments for my writing class and it is going to come in handy."

Gio nodded. "Never give up on your writing Betty. You have a real knack for it you know. If you keep working hard on your writing, it will make it easier to get one step closer to your dreams." He told her encouragingly.

"Thank You Gio." Betty said warmly. She looked down at her watch. It was after 1:00. "Wow, it's pretty late, I guess I better go inside." She stated looking at Gio.

Gio nodded. "Yeah." They stood looking at each other for a few moments and Gio wasn't sure what he should do. He knew what he wanted to do, but it wouldn't be right. He wanted to kiss Betty goodnight, but he couldn't. She had a boyfriend, who wasn't him and he would probably make her uncomfortable if he kissed her. So he decided not to do that, even though he wanted to. Betty was so beautiful to him, it was hard for him to resist kissing her. But he knew that he shouldn't do that and so he didn't. Instead he gave her shoulder a squeeze, told her "Good night" and walked away from her door.

As he was walking back to Terrence's car he glanced back at her one more time. She was using her key to unlock the door. Their eyes met and she smiled at him. She gave him a wave and then opened her door and went inside. Gio walked to Terence's car and got in the backseat. Kyle was sitting on the passenger's side. Terrence started the car and drove away from Betty's house. As he was driving, he looked in his rearview mirror at Gio and smiled. "I like Betty. She seems like a nice girl. You two just started dating right?" He inquired. "I don't recall you mentioning her before tonight?"

"Yeah I actually liked her as well." Kyle chimed in. "She's different than a lot of the other girls you have dated , but she seems like a cool chick. So you just got together with her?"

Gio took in his friends comments and questions about Betty and then spoke. "Well, actually…" He began. "I'm not dating Betty. She's just a friend of mine. She has a boyfriend, but he was unable to spend her birthday with her. So I offered to take her out instead to have some fun."

"Oh…" Terrence remarked surprised. "But I thought that you guys were… never mind I was wrong." Kyle turned back to give Gio a questioning look. "Whoa, Betty has a boyfriend?" He stated surprised. "I would not have guessed that. The way you guys were acting tonight, I thought she was your girl. Especially since you kept giving her those lovey dovey looks."

Gio chuckled softly. "What are you talking about man? I was not giving her any lovey dovey looks. Betty is my friend. Just my friend. I care about her and I wanted her to have a good time. That's all. Besides she does have a boyfriend. His name is Henry and he is an accountant like Terrence is."

Kyle was unconvinced. "_Right_." He stated in an unsure tone. "Dude, I think you might be lying to yourself. I saw the way you were looking at her. Those were not the looks of friendship. Those were I need you so desperately, and want you so badly looks…" His voice trailed off.

Gio laughed a little louder this time, even though he knew that what Kyle was saying was true. But he still denied it. "No man you are mistaken, that's not the way I see Betty. I only like her as a friend." He lied.

Kyle glanced at Terrence and smirked. "Hmmm…" He pondered. "What do you think Terrence? Do you think that Gio only likes Betty as a friend? Or did you see what I saw? The truth. That Gio definitely has feelings for Betty. Even if he doesn't want to admit it."

Terrence was quiet and thoughtful, his eyes on the road as he was driving. He wanted to choose his words carefully. He didn't want to put Gio on the spot about Betty and his feelings for her, but he agreed with Kyle. Gio definitely had feelings, for Betty, that much was apparent to him. Terrence had noticed the way that Gio had kept looking at her.

The passion, and admiration, in his eyes, and maybe even love? Terrence knew what is was like to have those type of feelings for someone, he felt that way about his girlfriend Jade. He had passion for her, he admired her and he loved her. He thought that Gio did have passion and admiration for Betty but did he love her? And if he did, why was he denying it? At the very least he could be honest with his friends about it. Gio did say that she had a boyfriend, and Terrence could understand why that would complicate things. But how serious was Betty and her boyfriend? Was there more to this story? Maybe Gio had a really good reason for denying his feelings for Betty. Terence thought about the situation some more and then spoke.

"Well…" He began. "Gio says she has a boyfriend and I think…"

"Her having a boyfriend doesn't mean anything." Kyle cut him off. "Gio wants Betty. I know it. You with your diplomatic self knows it. Gio knows it, even though he's lying to us about it. I'm sure he's probably lying to Betty about it. Maybe he's afraid her boyfriend is going to beat him up or something if he tells the truth." Kyle speculated.

Gio frowned. "Regardless of how I feel about Betty Henry is not going to beat me up."

"So you admit you have feelings for her then?" Kyle pressed.

"I never said that."

"You said regardless of how I feel about her… like it's possible you have feelings for her."

Gio shook his head. "No, that is not what I meant at all. I just meant even _if _I did have feelings for her _which I don't _that Henry is not going to beat me up. I do _not _have feelings for Betty." Gio emphasized.

"Liar. I can't believe that you are denying something like this. And I can't believe that you are lying to us, your friends of all people." Kyle remarked. He made a mock sad face. "I'm hurt man."

"Can we just drop it?" Gio asked loudly.

"Okay, Okay,.. We'll drop it." Terrence said trying to make peace.

"For now." Kyle stated.

Terrence looked at Gio quickly and noticed the frustrated look on his face. He decided to change the subject. "So how's work going for everyone?"

Gio relaxed at the change of subject and the guys talked about what was going on at their places of work. Terrence then dropped Kyle and Gio off at their homes.


	31. Chapter 31

**Chapter 31**

"I'll get it." Betty called out when she heard the doorbell ring. It was Monday morning, the day after her birthday, and she had the day off. Betty went to the door and opened it.

"Henry!" She exclaimed. She smiled at him and gave him a kiss. "I didn't expect to see you so soon." She admitted as she led him over to the couch to sit down.

"Well, I knew that you had today off, and I wanted to come see you this morning before I headed to work. I know it is kind of early, but I just wanted to see you. Betty." Henry took her hand in his. "I'm so sorry for yesterday. I knew it was your birthday and I wanted to make it special for you but everything happened with Charlie and the baby, and I wasn't able to. I'm sorry."

Betty smiled at Henry and gently stroked his face with her other hand. "It's okay Henry. I understand. You needed to be there for Charlie and the baby. We can celebrate my birthday some other time. Hey we did get to celebrate it in some way. We had a couple of really fun days in Philadelphia. It was lovely and I had a really good time with you Henry. I had a really good time celebrating my birthday with you."

Henry smiled at Betty's optimism. "I am glad that you had fun in Philadelphia with me Betty. But I still feel guilty about yesterday, you having to stay home on your actual birthday. Instead of staying in Philadelphia. Did you at least have a nice dinner with your family and watch a decent movie on TV?" Henry asked.

Betty moved around on the couch a little. She was a little nervous about telling Henry she spent time with Gio. She knew how he felt about that. But Betty was going to tell him the truth even though she knew that he probably wasn't going to like it.

"Dinner was nice. My dad made chicken enchiladas, and he also made my favorite cupcakes for me." Betty paused before she said what she was going to say next. "And afterwards I actually didn't stay inside, I went to a club."

"Oh, yeah?" Henry questioned. "Did you go out with Hilda or Christina?"

"No actually I went out with… Gio." Betty began talking kind of fast. "I went out with him and some friends of his. He was able to get us into this really nice Dance Club called Champagne and Roses for free, so I went out with him and some of his friends. It was a group thing and we had a good time." Betty finished quickly. She looked at Henry to see his reaction. A mixture of worry and displeasure was on his face. He seemed to be lost in thought.

Henry knew how Gio felt about Betty and he didn't like it at all. He had seen the way that Gio looked at Betty and he had overheard Amanda and Marc at Mode talking about his feelings for her. Henry knew that Gio was in love with her and he didn't want him hanging around Betty like a love sick puppy. Especially not when Henry only had a few more weeks with her.

Henry wasn't sure what to do. He had already told Betty how he felt about Gio being around, but he felt like there was no use saying that again. He wasn't so sure that it was right for him to say it the first time that he did. Betty was her own person, and she could do what she wanted, with or without Henry's input. She cared about Gio and liked being around him. Gio was her friend and Henry knew that he shouldn't try to take that away from her. Even though Gio was in love with her. And it wasn't like she felt the same way or that Gio would even try anything. Henry knew that he really didn't have the right to tell Betty who she should and shouldn't be friends with.

_She will probably lean on him when I am gone. _Henry thought to himself and that made him sad. He wanted to be there for Betty, but he knew that pretty soon he wasn't going to be able to. This situation was out of his hands.

Betty watched Henry while he was in thought. She knew that he was probably thinking about her hanging out with Gio and that made her feel guilty. Betty knew how Henry felt about Gio and she didn't want him to feel that way. She didn't want him to feel like Gio was a threat to their relationship and to be upset about it, especially since they had so little time left together.

"Henry.." She began. "I know my hanging out with Gio bothers you and I am…"

"No…Betty it's okay." Henry broke in. "I understand. I do. Gio is your friend and you have the right to hang out with him if you want to. I should have never suggested that you avoid him in the first place. I was wrong and for that I am sorry."

Betty nodded and hugged Henry. "Oh, Henry I love you so much." She expressed. "You don't have to worry about Gio, we're just friends. You're the one that I love. I mean he just came over last night to see if I wanted to hang out because of my birthday. We just hung out with a couple of friends of his. It was no big deal."

Henry nodded and smiled wearily. "I know Betty. I get it." He then looked down at his watch. "Well," He said rising up from his seat. "I need to head to work. But I will talk to you later. I still have some presents I have to give to you. I don't know why I didn't bring them over this morning. My head has been all over the place lately."

Betty also rose from the couch. "I can understand that. And I will definitely see you later." She kissed him. "Call me."

Henry nodded and Betty walked him to the door. He gave her one last wave and stepped out. He made his way to his car and got inside, and started it up. As he drove away from Betty's house some thoughts went through his mind. He didn't want to lose Betty. He really didn't. But he felt that everything was out of his hands. Unless… An idea came into Henry's head. It was an abrupt and risky one, but it might allow him to hold onto Betty. As Henry drove to Mode he thought more about his idea.


	32. Chapter 32

-1**Chapter 32**

"Back so soon?" Linda looked up from her couch at Marc and Amanda who had come into her place. She headed over to her couch and gestured for them to sit down with her. "How's everything been going since the last time you saw me?" She asked. "Anything exciting happen?'

"Yes and Yes!" Amanda exclaimed excitedly leaning forward towards Linda.

Linda smiled. "Alright you seem revved up. So tell me what happened."

"Well.." Amanda began. "My life was definitely in danger more than once like you predicted." Amanda proceeded to tell Linda about how she had choked on the hot dog and about the lady who had almost hit her with the beer bottle. She also told Linda how Gio had saved her both times. Linda listened intently to Amanda, her eyes wide and a surprised expression on her face.

"Wow that really happened?" Linda questioned surprised. "Man I am good." She declared, a look of satisfaction coming across her face.

"Yes you are." Marc stated. "Mandy's life was in danger but she was rescued both times by Gio… Gio…" He paused and looked up in the sky for a moment. "What is his last name again? I think it is Rigatoni or something." Marc turned his attention back to Linda. "But anyway Mandy was rescued by him. He was the 'G' that you were talking about."

Amanda nodded. "Yes, I found my G. And he saved me twice. But.." A curious look came across her face. "Is that it? I mean has he saved me all the times, that he's going to save me? I mean you said my life is going to be in danger more than once. And well Gio saved me more than once. So is that it? Or is my life going to be put in even more danger and he will have to save me again?" Amanda looked at Linda waiting for answers.

A solemn look came over Linda's face. "Well.." Linda began. "As I told you before I only see things in bits and pieces. I don't always get a whole lot of specifics in my visions. So I really can't answer your question. Maybe Gio will save you one more time, maybe twice, maybe he will save you a hundred more times. I'm not sure." Linda admitted.

"A hundred more times!" Amanda and Marc exclaimed in unison.

"I don't think I can live my life in constant fear like that." Amanda moaned.

"And I can't be worried for you that many times. I'll get premature wrinkles." Marc pouted.

Linda held up her hand to stop them from worrying so much. "Now wait a minute. I didn't say your life was going to be in danger a hundred more times. I said that I'm not certain how many more times, your life is going to be in danger. A hundred is just a number I was throwing out there. It doesn't mean it's going to happen. Maybe it won't be that many times. Who knows maybe Your life doesn't need to be saved by this Gio guy any longer. Maybe you're in the clear."

Amanda suddenly perked up. "Yay I'm in the clear! My life won't be in danger any more!" She turned to Marc and they high fived.

Linda shook her head at how quickly these two jumped to conclusions. "Now I didn't say that either. I just said that it is a possibility. Just like your life being in danger a hundred more times is a possibility. It doesn't mean either one of those things are going to happen, it just means that they are both possibilities."

"Oh." Amanda became sullen again. "So you really have no idea how many more times my life is going to need saving. Can't you make a guess? Can't you use your psychic's intuition?" Amanda was desperate for clear answers.

"Darling if I had to guess, I would say your life would need saving again, somewhere between zero and a hundred times."

Amanda sighed and rolled her eyes. "Well _that's _helpful." She stated sarcastically.

Linda saw the sullen look on her face and reached out and put her hand on Amanda's. "I'll tell you something Honey that might make you feel better. Once your life is through being saved. You'll know. Somehow you will know. It will be a feeling that you'll get. Trust me on that."

Amanda nodded. She felt slightly better. "Okay. I haven't had that feeling yet, so maybe my life will still be put in danger at least one more time or… a hundred."

Linda smiled. "But you will be saved. So you don't have to worry too much."

"Right." Amanda stated uncertain.

"So honey… is that all you wanted to talk to me about? How many more times your life is going to be saved? Or was there something else you wanted to talk to me about?" Linda questioned. Amanda looked at Marc who nodded his head at her to tell Linda the other reason why they were there.

"Yes, there is another reason." Amanda admitted. "I was wondering… is there anyway you could tell me what is going to happen in my love life. I mean I haven't been seeing anyone lately and I guess I'm at that point in my life where I'm looking for Mr. Right. You know? I'm looking for my soul mate, the love of my life, my other half, you know all that crap… Any chance you see him in my future?"

Linda smiled. "I'll see what I can do. Give me your hands." She instructed Amanda. Amanda gave her hands to Linda and Linda closed her eyes. "Wow your hands are so soft." She commented. "What do you use on them?"

"Mary Kay Satin Hands." Amanda informed her. "Oh, I have got to try that." Linda noted. She kept her eyes closed for a while and Amanda and Marc watched her to see what she was going to say.

"I'm getting something…" Linda stated. She closed her eyes for a little while longer and then they popped open. "Oh my!" She exclaimed.

"What is it? What did you see?" Amanda asked excitedly.

Linda smiled at her. "I think I saw the man of your dreams. It looks like you are going to be meeting him shortly."

"Shut up!" Amanda exclaimed happily. "Really?!"

Linda nodded and her smile grew wider. "Really and he is something else. He is quite wonderful."

"Well, when I do meet him? What does he look like? Is he rich? Is he a successful businessman, a hot shot lawyer, a movie star.? He's famous isn't he? Oh my gosh he's famous!" Amanda started bouncing up and down she was so happy.

"Oh Mandy you won't be an old maid after all. I'm so happy I could cry rainbows!" Marc exclaimed.

He gave Amanda a hug. "Me too Marc." Amanda whispered happily. "Me too."

Linda laughed at the two friends excitement at the latest information that she had given them. "Now wait…" She began caution in her voice. "I don't know if he's famous or not, or even if he's rich or not. Quite honestly I didn't even see his face. I saw… I felt his presence, his persona,… it's really good. He has a really good personality. He is going to be good for you and good to you."

Amanda and Marc calmed down after hearing Linda's comments. "Wait.. You don't know if he's famous or rich or even handsome?" Amanda questioned concerned. "I mean those are the most important qualities in a man. Presence, persona are good if you're blind, but I have eyes and a need for expensive clothes. I don't want my dream guy to be a poor troll or something. That would just be Ew."

"Double Ew." Marc echoed Amanda's thoughts.

Linda frowned at their sudden change in attitude. She crossed her hands in her lap. "Remember guys I said I see things in bits and pieces and not really specific details. And that is what I saw in my vision about your dream guy. I didn't see whether he was famous or not, or wealth or even what he looked like. I just saw him, I saw who he _really_ is. And he is your dream man. You won't be disappointed."

Amanda frowned uncertain. "I don't know… if you can't tell if he has the most important qualities that I want in a man, then maybe he is not my dream man. Maybe he's someone else's. Did you get your visions mixed up or something?"

Linda looked insulted. "No he was definitely for _you_."

Amanda shook her head. "He can't be. Not if he doesn't possess the _most _important qualities I want in a man."

Linda sighed. "Amanda … maybe he is rich, but not famous. Maybe he is famous but not rich. Maybe he is handsome, but not famous. Maybe he is handsome but not rich. Maybe he is handsome but not rich or famous. Maybe he is rich but not handsome or famous. Maybe he is all those things and maybe he is _none _of those things. But he _is _your dream man. I know what I saw."

Amanda was quieted by the the certainty in Linda's voice. "Okay… geesh. Let's hope I get at least two out of three. I'll settle for handsome and rich."

"Well he might be at least some of those things, but then again he might not be." Linda informed her. But even if he's none of those things, he's still your…" All of a sudden she closed her eyes again. "Oh wait I'm getting more about him."

Amanda looked surprised. "Really?" She questioned. "Can you see what type of car that he drives, maybe if we find out, that can help answer at least one of my questions." "Shh!" Linda said. "Oh wow… hmm… interesting…" She closed her eyes for a couple of more minutes and the whole room was silent as Amanda and Marc anxiously awaited what she was going to say.

Linda opened her eyes again. "Okay I got some more information about him. And I think that you are going to be very interested in hearing it."

Amanda leaned forward. "What else did you find out about him?" She asked anxiously.

"Well, this is going to sound strange, but you know your G, that Gio guy, well he is going to help you find your dream man. It looks like he is going to lead you straight to him."

"What!" Marc and Amanda exclaimed at the same time surprised.

"The sandwich guy is going to lead Mandy to her dream man?" Marc questioned surprised. "How is he going to do that?" He questioned. "Is he going to play matchmaker for her or something?"

Linda shrugged her shoulders. "I don't know. I just know that he is going to lead Amanda to her dream man in one way or another."

"Wow really?" Amanda asked surprised. "Gio leads me to my dream guy. That's so.. That is…"

"Not impossible." Linda finished. "Not in the least bit. Maybe your dream guy is someone that he works with, maybe it's a sibling of his or something. Or maybe…"

"It's him!" Marc speculated. "Maybe Gio _is_ your dream guy."

"What!" Amanda exclaimed. "No way. No way is my dream guy _Gio_. That doesn't even fit Linda's vision." Amanda looked at Linda. "Does it? I mean he's so not my type, even if he was, which he is _not, _he's in love with Betty."

"Who's Betty?" Linda asked curiously.

Marc waved his hand. "She is a walking fashion disaster that works at Mode who Gio is in love with."

Linda nodded taking in this information. "Oh." She said.

"Yeah well anyway he's in love with her." Amanda stated. " And even if he wasn't he's definitely not my type. Gio is definitely not my dream guy. Please tell me that he's not." Amanda looked at Linda for confirmation.

"Well, according to my vision Gio is supposed to help you find your dream man. As I said I believe that he is going to lead you straight to him. I don't think he's going to lead you to himself. And I think if he was your dream man, you might have figured it out already. Or at least have more feelings for him than what you seem to have for him now. You're not even attracted to him are you?"

Amanda shook her head. "No. He is not my type. Truth be told I'm more attracted to Betty's boyfriend Henry. He's a nerdy accountant that works at Mode, but he is hot in his own way."

"Maybe your dream man is Henry!" Marc suggested. "Might as well throw that out there why we are speculating about who your dream man is." He added.

"Are Henry and Gio friends?" Linda asked.

Amanda laughed. "Of course not. They are both in love with Betty and they both know it. They are having like a silent war over her right now. It's not pretty." Amanda paused thinking. Then she continued . "And while I think that Henry is hot in his own way, I don't think he's my dream guy. I've actually talked to him quite a few times, and if he was my dream guy I think we would have clicked. There would have been some chemistry there, some sparks."

"Fireworks." Linda added.

Amanda nodded. "Exactly. And I don't notice Fireworks when I'm around Henry. Even if I did he's got some serious baggage. He is having a baby with this red headed twit named Charlie. Plus he's in love with Betty like Gio is. So I definitely don't think that Henry is my dream man either."

Linda nodded. "Okay, then we'll go back to what I originally suggested. That your dream man is someone who works with Gio, or a friend of his, or maybe a sibling or relative of his. I think that those are all plausible possibilities."

Amanda nodded. "I guess. You saw what you saw. So Gio will lead me to my dream man. Here's hoping he is rich, handsome and famous." Amanda looked down at her watch. "We have to be getting back to Mode." She remarked. Her and Marc got off of the couch. "We'll come back if we need to talk to you about anything else. Thank you for your services."

"You're welcome honey and come back again." Amanda and Marc paid Linda and made their way back to Mode discussing Linda's predictions for Amanda on the way there.


	33. Chapter 33

-1**Chapter 33**

"Okay guys, your paper is due next Tuesday. Email me or come see me during Office Hours if you have any questions." Paul Austin told his class. "Have a good day everyone." He smiled at them and started to put his papers away. While he was putting things away, one of his students Janice came up to him. She started to bat her eyelashes and smiled at him coyly.

"Professor Austin I don't know if I am going to be able to come by during your regularly scheduled office hours. You might need to set aside a special time for me." Janice leaned over his desk seductively, smiling up at him.

Paul cringed on the inside. Janice was always trying to flirt with him and he didn't like it. "Well, Miss Huckles, you can always e-mail me on my off hours if you need help. And I can give you a writing tutorial online."

"But.." Janice began hoping to change his mind.

"Email me or come by my office hours if you need help Ms. Huckles. This week I have extended my office hours. So you have plenty of time to see me if you need help for your paper. Have a good day Ms. Huckles." Janice realizing that she wasn't going to get anywhere frowned and left, pushing past Sage on her way out of the classroom.

"Hmm what was her problem?" Sage asked smiling knowingly at Paul. He started to open his mouth but she spoke first. "I already know. She tried to make a pass at you and you a put a stop to it." She stepped into the classroom. "Just another day in the life of the hunky and charming Professor Austin."

Paul laughed. "You guessed right. Tell me Sage are you psychic or something?"

Sage smiled. "No. I just know how women behave around my big brother." She went over to Paul and gave him a hug. "Hi, how are you doing?"

"Fine." Paul said smiling at his sister. "How are you? How's business?"

"I'm fine and everything is good, and business is going well. Actually very well. Sales are up twenty-five percent from last year."

Paul broke out in a smile. "That's great Sage. I'm happy for you."

"Thanks. So how are things going for you here at NYU, Professor_?"_

Paul picked up his folder that contained his notes and some student assignments. "Everything is good, I have some really bright students in my class this term, and we have had some pretty good discussions about writing and some of the stories I have assigned them to read. Everything is going well."

Sage nodded. "I'm glad Paul." She looked down at her watch. "It's about lunchtime. I want to take you to this great deli that I discovered a while ago. The sandwiches there are delicious, and the owner is a friend of mine. You'll love it."

"I hope the food is good." Paul stated. "I'm pretty hungry so let's go." He picked up his belongings and him and Sage headed out of the classroom and went outside to his car. They both got inside and Paul started up the car. "Okay you have to tell me where this deli is Sage."

Sage gave him directions to Gio's deli and on the way there they chatted some more about their jobs and what was going on in their lives.

"So are you seeing anyone?" Sage asked. "It's been a while since your break up with Leslie. I think that you should start dating again." Paul kept his eyes focused on the road, but managed to give a quick look to Sage.

"No one special right now." He admitted. "I don't know Sage. I guess I'm hesitant to start dating again. My break up with Leslie was pretty bad. Here was this woman I had known for four years, fell in love with rather quickly, got deeply involved with and then…" His voice trailed off with regret.

"And then you realized the truth about Leslie. That she was selfish, spoiled, narcisstic, mean spirited, spiteful, jealous. All the things mom and I said she was the first time that we met her." Sage finished.

"Sage…" A frustrated look came over Paul's face. "Leslie wasn't… she wasn't always like…"

"Like a hateful witch?" Sage laughed. "Oh yes she was Paul. She was _always _that way." Sage ran her fingers through her hair. "She had this way of getting under people's skin. She was always insulting people, and when she gave compliments they were often backhanded." Sage looked out her window for a moment and then looked back at Paul. "You were way too good for her Paul. _Way _too good for her. You deserved a lot better."

Paul sighed and turned down a street. "Well it's over now. I'm sure you and mom threw a party when you found out we had broken up."

"No, we only had a lavish dinner to celebrate your freedom from her." Sage joked. "I admit we were thrilled when we found out but we were also angry and kind of sad. For _you_ not her." She clarified. "I mean I can't believe she cheated on you and with one of your close friends at that. I so wanted to find her and wring her neck for hurting you like that."

"It was difficult, but I got through it. Even though thinking about what she did still hurts sometimes. And sometimes I find myself thinking about her wondering what it would be like if we were still together. I…I thought Leslie was the one Sage. I really did. I thought that she was the woman that I was going to be with always, the woman of my dreams." Paul confessed.

"Well, she wasn't. Because if she was those would have been some pretty bad dreams." Sage reached over and lightly rubbed her brother's arm. "Everything is going to work out. You will find the woman of your dreams eventually Paul and she'll be exactly what you are looking for." She assured him. "I mean you're a really good man, you have a good heart, you're incredibly intelligent, you have a decent job, and you are very handsome. All of my friends think that you are super hot. Some of them kept asking if you were single back when you were with Leslie. And you seem to attract women like a magnet. Women like to throw themselves at you. I remember Leslie complaining a lot about that. It really made her angry, at how much attention that women give you. "

"I know." Paul admitted. "I told Leslie that she was the only woman that I loved and wanted to be with. But she would throw fits if another woman so much as looked at me. She was as you mentioned quite jealous at times. It was definitely one of the roughest spots in our relationship."

"Your whole relationship was like Sandpaper." Sage remarked. She saw the sad look on her brother's face after she said that, and she felt bad. Sage knew that Paul was a wonderful man and that it pained him to talk and listen to his relationship with Leslie be talked about this way. But what they both were saying was the truth. Leslie had been an awful girlfriend, to Paul. Paul was a wonderful boyfriend to her and had treated her well, much like he treated people in general. Leslie didn't deserve him. Sage knew that her brother deserved much better than someone like Leslie and she hoped that he would find that woman

"Hey.." She said softly. "You will find a woman that is deserving of you Paul. I know that you will. Trust me on that."

"Thanks Sage." Paul said appreciatively. They continued to talk on their way to Gio's deli.


	34. Chapter 34

-1**Chapter 34**

"Just give me a Turkey sandwich on wheat with just the Turkey." Amanda instructed Gio as she stood in front of the countertop at his deli.

"Okay, one plain Turkey sandwich coming right up."

"Wait a minute…" Amanda paused. "I changed my mind. I want more than just Turkey, I also want mustard, tomato, Swiss and cheddar cheese, oregano and ham."

Gio smiled. "Hey you're an eater."

"A what?" Amanda asked taking a seat at one of the stools in front of his countertop.

"An eater." Gio repeated. "It means you like to eat." He stated matter of factly.

Amanda shrugged. "Oh."

Gio went over to the sink and washed his hands. He began to make Amanda's sandwich.

As Amanda watched him make her sandwich. A thought came into her mind. She remembered what Linda said about Gio leading her to her dream man, and she was wondering how he was going to do that. That was the main reason why she had come to Gio's deli today for lunch. She had wanted to see if he would somehow lead her to her dream man. So far he wasn't leading her to anything.

"So.." Amanda began attempting to get one step closer to her dream man. "Do you have any brothers?"

"Yeah." Gio said continuing to make her sandwich. "Two older brothers."

Amanda perked up some after hearing this information. "How ugly are they? Are they rich? Are they single?" She asked abruptly.

Gio shook his head. "No they are married and they have kids." He looked up at Amanda. "Wait a minute did you just ask me how _ugly_ they are?"

Amanda smirked. "Yeah, I don't want my future dream man to be a mutant. And if one of your brothers was going to be my dream man, well… I didn't want them to have an appearance that would crack a compact mirror."

Gio looked at Amanda perplexed. _She's acting weird again_. He thought to himself. "Um.. Amanda why would one of my brothers be your dream guy?"

Amanda sighed. She wasn't getting any closer to her dream man like she wanted to. She wasn't sure what to do. She thought for a moment and then decided to tell Gio the truth about what Linda said. "I went to my psychic the other day, and she told me, that you were going to lead me to my dream man. And she suggested that my dream man could be a sibling of yours. So that is why I asked you if you had any brothers."

Gio frowned. Here was Amanda talking about that psychic nonsense again. "What?" He questioned surprised. "What is up with your psychic and her predictions? And why do I always seem to be apart of them?"

Amanda shrugged. "I don't know. But you are. And the last time I saw her she said you were going to lead me to my dream man. So get to it. Lead to me dream man."

Gio shook his head. "Wow…Amanda. How am I supposed to do that?" He questioned.

"I don't know but you have to. Linda said you did." Amanda pouted. She perked up again when she realized what else Linda had said. "Hey are there any hot guys that work here with you?" She probed.

"There's Jason and I just hired a new guy Tom. But Jason has a girlfriend and I think that Tom is engaged. And I don't know if I feel comfortable calling either one of them _hot." _Amanda sulked again. "Oh." She said disappointed. "Well what about your friends? Do you know any, successful businessmen, rich lawyers, rich actors, male models?"

"Well, Fabio is one of my nearest and dearest friends." Gio remarked sarcastically.

"Don't do that!" Amanda chastised him.

"Do what?" Gio asked innocently.

"Make fun of me." Amanda frowned at him. "This is crucial. Linda said you are supposed to lead me to my dream guy and well you're not leading me to anyone. You're slacking."

Gio finished making her sandwich and wrapped it up. He grabbed a paper bag and put it in there.

"Amanda you just told me this information like five minutes ago. And it's based on what your psychic said. Your _psychic_. A person who is probably telling you exactly what you want to hear to milk you out of your money. Regardless of whether it's true or not. You think you're the only person that Linda told will find their dream man? She probably tells people that all the time, that doesn't mean it's going to happen. Love can't be pulled out of the air like that. It's not that easy. Sometimes it can be right in front of your face and you're unable to grab a hold of it."

"You mean like you and Betty?" Amanda remarked. "She's right in front of your face but you can't grab a hold of her. Even though you're _dying_ to."

Gio sighed. "Amanda I don't see what Betty has to do with a psychic scamming you and telling you lies."

Amanda smirked. " It seems to me that just because you're in love with Betty and _miserable_ about it, you want to be a grinch and rob me of my chance of happiness. You're refusing to help me find my dream man, even though it's your _duty. _You're a cruel short sandwich maker."

She reached into her purse to get some money to pay him for her sandwich. "You know if you took more risks, like I am trying to take, you wouldn't be so unhappy. You'd be one step closer to getting what you want."

"The lovely lady is right Gio." Kyle walked up to the countertop. He looked at Gio and then at Amanda and smiled. "You have to take risks to get what you want man. Isn't that what you've always told me and Terrence to do when we wanted something."

"Yeah, Gio." Amanda handed him the money to pay for her sandwich. "Go after Betty." She leaned close to the countertop. "And _help_ me." She whispered hoping that Kyle wouldn't hear.

Kyle nodded. "You got to be more aggressive, if you want Betty. You got to do something about it. She's not married so she's fair game. Well in my opinion that makes her fair game."

Gio frowned. "You guys…Betty has a boyfriend that she loves. And I don't see her that way…"

"Liar!" Amanda and Kyle said at the same time and then looked at each other and smiled. Gio shook his head. He gave Amanda her sandwich. "Did you need any napkins or anything?" He asked. Amanda shook her head. She turned to leave but looked at Kyle and smiled again at him. He was kind of cute in a goofy laid back kind of way. He seemed familiar with Gio, so he must have known him.

"Are you a friend of Gio?" She asked curiously. Kyle nodded and smiled. "One of his best friends." He stuck out his hand to shake Amanda's. "I'm Kyle Sletherson and you are…"

"Amanda Tanning." She shook his hand. He seemed like a nice guy and he was one of Gio's best friends. Gio was supposed to lead her to her dream man and Kyle had showed up. Could Kyle be her dream man? He wouldn't have been her first choice, but he wasn't too shabby. Amanda found herself staring at Kyle wondering if he was her dream man.

"So." Kyle began snapping Amanda out of her trance. "How do you know Gio?"

"I work at Mode a magazine company and he's delivered sandwiches there before. He's come there a lot to fawn over Betty."

Kyle laughed and glanced at Gio who was frowning. "I'll bet. But if there are any more ladies at Mode as lovely as you are, I could understand why he would want to deliver sandwiches there all the time."

Amanda smiled. Kyle was kind of charming. She liked that. Flattery could get him somewhere.

"Why thank you." Amanda said.

"Hey Kyle I thought I wasn't going to see you until tonight. I thought that you had to prepare lunch for a large group of business executives?'' Gio said looking at Kyle.

"Are you a sandwich guy too?" Amanda asked.

"No, I actually am a Sous chef at the restaurant Northern Skies."

"Oh." Amanda nodded. She didn't know what a Sous chef was but it sounded better than a sandwich maker, and Northern Skies was a pretty upscale restaurant.

Kyle looked at Gio. "They moved the lunch to next week. So I had a little free time and I decided to come and see if you wanted to go see that band Passion Clippers that is coming to Champagne and Roses Thursday. I know that you like them and I have the night off."

Gio shook his head. "I'm sorry man but I have to work."

Kyle nodded. "I understand."

"I love Passion Clippers!" Amanda commented excitedly. "I had no idea they were coming to New York."

Kyle smiled. "I just found out a little while ago. I was happy to hear the news. They are one of my favorite bands." He looked at Amanda. "Hey, I don't know if you would consider this too forward, but… would you like to go with me to see them? We could grab a bite to eat before hand?"

Amanda looked at him. She wasn't quite sure if he was her dream man or not, but right now he was the best and only option available. He was kind of cute, and he seemed like a really nice guy. Plus he loved Passion Clippers like she did. Amanda decided to go on the date with him. "Sure." She said.

"Awesome."

Amanda gave Kyle her number and address, said good-bye to him and Gio and turned to walk away. As she was walking towards the front of the deli her cell phone started ringing. Amanda kept walking and tried to reach down in her purse to get it. While she was walking out the front door, she bumped into someone trying to come in. "Oops." She said as she dropped her purse, some of the contents falling out.

"I'm sorry. I'll help you with that." A voice said.

"No, it's fine I got it." Amanda said hastily, not looking up at who had spoken to her. She put her stuff back in her purse, grabbed it, turned, got up and walked in the other direction away from whoever had bumped into her.

Paul watched her for a moment as she walked away. "Hey Paul." Sage called his name turning his attention back to her. "Let's go inside." Paul nodded and let his eyes leave the very pretty woman that he had just bumped into. They both went inside Gio's Deli to have lunch.


	35. Chapter 35

-1**Chapter 35**

"I really love this author. Thanks for getting me their newest books. After I finish reading these, there will be one more book left in the series." She put the books he had given her back in the bag along with the rest of the gifts that he had given her. "Thank You." Betty said graciously. "All of your gifts are lovely."

Henry smiled. "I'm glad that you like them but there is one more."

Betty smiled. "Really another gift?"

Henry nodded and reached into his pocket and pulled out a black box.

Betty looked surprised. "Henry is that…?"

"It is." Henry opened the box to reveal a diamond ring.

"Betty…" He began his eyes looking into hers. "I love you, you're a big part of me, and I want to be with you always…"

"Henry…" Betty wasn't quite sure what to say.

"I know Betty that since we got together, things haven't always been so smooth, this whole thing with Charlie and the baby." He sighed. "I know it hasn't been easy for you at all. And I know that I was supposed to go back to Tucson after the baby is born. I still intend to." He added. "But I want you to come back with me…as my wife." He paused. "What I am trying to say is Betty… will you marry me?" Henry looked into her eyes waiting for an answer, and hoping for the one that he wanted.

Betty was speechless. She wasn't so sure what to say. She loved Henry. She knew that much. But marrying him? Right now? Betty didn't know if she was ready for that. She didn't want to just up and leave her family and go to Tucson. And she loved Mode, and she didn't want to leave there either. She felt like she had made progress there and could make more progress, if she continued to work hard and take advantage of the opportunities there.

And the whole thing with Charlie and the baby. Henry had a baby that was due, in the next couple of weeks. Betty didn't know if she could just marry Henry and go live with him and the baby… and Charlie. What would Charlie think? How would she react? There were so many unanswered questions, so many unknowns. Betty wasn't sure what to do.

She tried to think of something to say. "Henry, I love you too. You know that. But… I don't know if I can marry you. I mean I don't think that I can just up and leave my family, and Mode. My whole life is here in New York. I don't know if I just want to give all of that up. And then there's the baby… how is that going to work out?"

Henry frowned. "I know that you don't want to leave your life here in New York, and I know that the baby is a big deal and of course Charlie…" His voice trailed off. "I don't know Betty maybe I didn't think things all the way through. I just… I want to be with you. I don't want to leave you and I thought that if you married me, that wouldn't have to happen and we could be together." He looked at her sadly.

Betty nodded. "I understand Henry. I do. But I'm not sure what to do. I love you and I do want to continue to be with you…" Betty thought for a moment. "I need a little time, to figure out what to do. I need a little time, before I can give you a clear answer about your question."

Henry nodded. "Okay."

Betty reached over and gave Henry a hug and a kiss. "I just need time to figure things out Henry." Betty and Henry held onto each other a while longer and then let each other go. They talked for a little while longer and then Henry went home. Betty sat on her couch for a while after he left deep in thought about his proposal and what would happen if she said yes or no. She knew that she had a big decision to make and she wanted to make sure it was the right one.


	36. Chapter 36

-1**Chapter 36**

It was a little while before closing time and Gio was in the deli by himself. There weren't any customers in the deli and he had told Jason that he could go home, since business had slowed down a lot and it was nearing closing time. As Gio wiped down the countertop, he thought about what had happened that day. He had sold a decent amount of sandwiches and business had been pretty good.

He had seen Sage again, which was definitely a good thing. Gio really liked Sage, she had become a good friend to him. She had a wonderful personality, and she was very pretty. If Gio weren't so in love with Betty he probably would have asked her out a while ago. But he was in love with Betty and he didn't want to possibly get involved in a new relationship, when he still had such strong feelings for Betty. When or if his feelings died down for Betty , he would start dating again. But right now it wouldn't be fair to any woman, if he started to date her, because his heart was with Betty. Even if her heart wasn't with him.

Gio thought back some more on seeing Sage today. She had brought her brother Paul to the deli. Gio had liked Paul. He was a professor from NYU and he seemed thoughtful, very intelligent, and an all around nice guy. He, Sage and Paul had talked for a while and had a good time together.

As Gio started to put away some of the food, he also thought back on seeing Amanda that day as well as Kyle. Gio couldn't help but smile to himself, when he thought of the stuff that Amanda had said to him. Some of it was actually very funny and ridiculous. Amanda had said that he would lead her to her dream man, because a psychic said so. That whole idea had seemed ridiculous to Gio and he thought that Amanda was getting scammed by her psychic big time. And he had tried to tell her so.

Gio didn't think that he was going to lead Amanda to her dream man, but she was determined that he was. Gio remembered his conversation with Amanda and how Kyle had showed up. Kyle and Amanda seemed to have hit it off and were going on a date Thursday. To Gio they seemed like a good match. He imagined they would have a good time together when they went and saw the band Passion Clippers. They seemed like they could be in synch with each other. They liked the same band, and they had both had the same opinion about Gio and his feelings for Betty.

They had both told him to go after her if he wanted her , to take risks. Gio sighed when he remembered their words to him. They had no idea he wanted to do that so badly. But he felt like he couldn't. He didn't think it was the best thing to do. Betty was with Henry, Betty loved Henry and Gio didn't really have a chance with her. At least not right now. Gio figured that he would try to ride out the wave. He would just be there for Betty as a friend for now.

He'd be there for her when Henry left in a few weeks after the baby was born. Henry would be out of Betty's life for good, she would probably be sad, and need some support. Gio would be there for her, if she would let him. And he would always be there for her, if she would let him. And if it ever evolved into something more that would be great, but if it didn't Gio would have to live with that. Gio started to put some of the other food away, when he heard someone come in the deli.

He looked up to see who it was. He smiled. "Betty!" He said hoping she wouldn't notice the excitement in his voice. "It's kind of late, almost closing time. What are you doing here?"

Betty came up to the countertop and gave Gio a smile. "I was just out and about., and I got hungry. I knew your place was close by so I decided to come here. I hope it's not too late?"

Gio shook his head. "It's fine. I can make you something really quick. What do you want?"

"A Chicken Salad sandwich." Betty answered.

Gio smiled. "Of course." He went and washed his hands and then started to make Betty's sandwich. "So.." he began, as he was making her sandwich. "Did you have some late night errands to run or were you visiting someone?"

"No, I just needed to clear my head. I've.. I've got a lot going on right now." She informed him.

Gio noticed the weariness in her voice. "Is everything okay?" He asked concerned. "Is everyone in your family okay? Is everything okay at Mode?"

"My family is fine and things at Mode are as crazy as they have ever been. But I can handle it. That's not it. That's not what I'm worried about…" Betty hesitated. She wasn't sure if she wanted to tell Gio about Henry's proposal and him wanting her to move to Tucson with him. She wasn't so sure if she should. She hadn't even had a chance to tell Hilda or the rest of her family about it yet. Or Christina. She didn't know if she should tell Gio what was going on right now. _But he is my friend_. Betty thought to herself _And he's a guy. Maybe he can give me some perspective into what is going on with Henry right now. Maybe I should tell him_. Betty reasoned. _He's going to find out sooner or later._

"Gio…" She watched as he continued to make her sandwich. "Something big happened to me tonight, I have a decision to make and I wanted to hear your advice about it."

Gio looked up at her and smiled. "Alright hit me with it Betty. Tell what is your dilemma and I'll do my best to help."

"Well, Henry asked me to marry him tonight…" Upon hearing these words, the smile dropped off of Gio's face instantly. His head and his heart started to hurt simultaneously and he felt like his world was crashing down. _Henry had asked Betty to marry him? Tonight? How could this happen? _Well he knew how it could happen. He cursed silently to himself. This was not what he had wanted to happen at all. Henry proposing marriage to Betty. _Did she say yes? _No, she couldn't have said yes, or else she wouldn't be here with him asking him what he thought about which decision she should make.

Betty didn't even notice the change in Gio's demeanor. She kept right on talking. "Look I know it's a really big decision. And I love Henry. I do. But I don't know if I could just up and marry him. And move to Tucson with him and the baby. And with Charlie close by. She hates me you know, and I don't know if I can deal with her in my face on a constant basis, if I became Henry's wife. There are so many unknowns and whatifs if we get married. I mean I'm not sure what to do." Betty looked at Gio. "What should I do Gio?"

Gio finished making Betty's sandwich, wrapped it up and put in a paper bag for her. He was very quiet. Unusually quiet. Betty noted to herself. He gave the bag to her. "It's on the house." He said quietly.

Betty took the bag from him. "Thanks. But Gio help! Tell me what you think I should do." Gio looked at Betty, his eyes locking into hers. Betty noticed that he looked rather intense and that there was sadness in his eyes, mixed with a look of longing, and something else that she couldn't quite place at the moment.

"Betty… I don't think… I don't think I can be of any help to you." He said sadly.

Betty frowned. "What? What do you mean you can't be of any help. Of course you can. You have to have an opinion about this. You have an opinion about everything else."

Gio nodded. "I do. But this time Betty…"

"This time what Gio? What's stopping you from saying what you think this time? You always tell me what is on your mind. Why should this time be any different?" Betty looked at him quizzically. _What's wrong with him? _she wondered to herself. "What, are you afraid that I am going to hate you if you tell me the truth about how you feel?"

Gio looked at her stunned.

"Look Gio, I'm not going to be mad at you for saying what you think. I won't. I promise. If you think that I would be messing up my life by marrying Henry tell me. If you think that I will end up being a coward if I don't take a risk and accept his marriage proposal. Tell me. Tell me if you think I'll be making a mistake if I agree to marry him or if I don't." She looked at him with a pleading look in her eyes.

"We're friends, Gio. I know that we didn't start out on the best foot, but I have come to see you as one of my good friends. And believe it or not I do respect your opinion. So that's why I'm asking you to tell me what you think I should do about me and Henry. You're the first person I have told about this. I want to know what you think. So tell me about it. Tell me the truth and hold nothing back. Tell me the truth Gio. I can take it."

Gio looked into her dark brown eyes, listening intently to every word that she was saying. She trusted him. Enough to tell him about something this big that was going on in her life. And that meant the world to him. Now could he trust her enough to tell her the truth about how he really felt about her? He felt that maybe he could but he wasn't so sure if he was going to risk it. He finally spoke.

"Betty…" Gio began. "Henry asking you to marry him is a huge deal. And he wants to take you away to Tucson. Away from your family, your friends, your job at Mode. You told me that you are now actually writing articles for some of the magazines at Mode. Every day you are getting a little bit closer to your dreams. Are you sure you're willing and ready to give all of that up for Henry?" He asked.

"I love Henry, Gio, and there are so many thing that I would do to be with him. But giving up all those things, I don't know… I mean I do love him but I just don't know Gio." She looked at him. "What would you do Gio?"

Gio thought for a moment. He then told her what could kill the last chance he would have to be with her.

"If I really wanted to follow my dreams more than anything and that was the place that I was at in my life, then I would follow my dreams. If I felt that the love and relationship that I had with a person wasn't as strong as that desire to follow my dreams and get to where I wanted to be in life, then I would follow my dreams."

Betty nodded seeming satisfied with his answer. "Well in that case…"

"But…" Gio continued. "If I loved someone enough that I would do _anything_ for them, walk through fire for them, do anything for them and I mean _anything, _including give up my dreams, or change my plans, because they were my best dream and I wanted them more than anything. Then I would give things up and be with the person that I love. Because Betty that type of love is stronger than anything, and well… if I felt that way about a person I would do anything to be with them."

"_Liar!" _Amanda and Kyle's voices went through his head "_You have to take risks to get what you want man…"You got to be more aggressive, if you want Betty. You got to do something about it." "Go after Betty." _Everything that Amanda and Kyle had said about Betty went through Gio's mind. He couldn't get what they had said to him about taking a risk and going after Betty out of his mind. Their advice seemed to stick with him, and he tried to ignore it but it kept going through his head.

Betty noticed how deep in thought he was. She decided to leave him to his thoughts. "Well, thanks for the advice Gio. I definitely have a lot to think about and figure out what to do." She grabbed her sandwich and turned to leave.

As Gio watched her turned to leave, he debated on whether or not to stop her and tell her the truth about how he really felt about her. He wanted to do that so badly, but he didn't know if it was the best thing to do. And he wanted to do what made sense. He _had _to do what made sense.

Gio took off his apron, and went around the countertop. "Hey Betty.. Wait." He called out.  
She turned to look at him, giving him a smile. "What is it Gio?" She asked turning to face him.

"_This_." Gio stepped forward, wrapped his arms around Betty's waist and kissed her. He kissed her with all the passion, and love that had been hidden inside of him for a while. He heard Betty gasp when his lips met hers and he heard something drop. Maybe it was her sandwich? Gio wasn't sure. All he knew was how soft her lips were. How warm they were. How good it felt to _finally_ kiss the woman that he loved. Gio massaged her lips with his, savoring every moment of the kiss. It could be the first and last kiss that they shared and he wanted to make sure it lasted. Gio continued to kiss Betty, and it seemed like she wasn't resisting him. He felt her hands go up and cup his face. They kissed for a while longer and finally Betty pulled away from him. She stepped back from him, her eyes wide in shock and her face flushed from their kiss. Several thoughts were racing through her mind, all colliding with each other.

"Gio.." Betty was flabbergasted. "Why did you do…?"

Gio looked at Betty, his eyes intently looking into hers. "Because I'm in love with you." He stated simply.

Betty was stunned. Gio loved her? _Since when? _

"You're in l-ove with me." She stammered out.

"I am."

"But Gio we're friends… how could you be in love with me?"

Gio sighed. "Betty I have you loved for a while now. Of course you didn't know about it, because I never told you. I never told anyone. I tried to keep it to myself…"

Betty looked at him waiting for him to continue. Gio took a deep breath, and continued. "Look I know you're with Henry and that you love him. "But Betty…" He shook his head, hopelessly. "I can't help the way that I feel about you. I can't. I tried lying to myself about it and to other people who pointed it out, but I can't do it anymore Betty. I just _can't_." He looked at her waiting for her to say something. She was speechless. Gio continued talking.

"I love you because you're smart and beautiful, and kind. And because you're ambitious. And funny. And because… there's just something about you. Something That makes you special. I can't quite put my finger on what it is. But it sets you apart from other people, from other women." He stepped a little closer to her. "I see it. I know Henry sees it. I'm pretty sure Daniel sees it as well. Lots of people do, whether they admit it or not. You're one of a kind Betty." He looked down at the floor and saw that she had dropped her sandwich. He picked up the bag and handed it to her. Betty took the bag. So many emotions and thoughts were going through her head because of the kiss and Gio's confession that he loved her. They were traveling through her mind and heart at rapid speed and she needed some time to connect and identify them all. She finally decided to speak again.

"Gio…you love me, what do you want me to… what am I supposed do about that?"

Gio looked at her. "I don't expect you to do anything, about it Betty." He told her honestly. "I don't. I don't expect you to change your mind about Henry or break up with him, or not marry him, or stop loving him. I don't expect you to turn your feelings for him off, just because I told you that I loved you. Just like I can't turn my feelings for you off. I know that it's not that simple. I just wanted to tell you…I needed to tell you.. To show you… that I loved you. I couldn't keep it to myself anymore."

Betty nodded. "Well… thanks for being honest with me." She told him meekly. She knew that wasn't what he really wanted to hear but it was the best thing that she could say to him at the moment. She had to get out of the deli go somewhere and think about everything. Henry's proposal, his love for her, Gio's love for her and how unexpected and strong it was.

"Look Gio.. I have to go." Betty said looking at him hoping that he would understand.

He did. "I understand Betty. I'll see you around?" He asked hopefully not sure how likely that was going to be given everything that had just happened and what was going on with Henry.

Betty nodded. "Yeah…Bye Gio."

"Bye Betty."

She looked at him one last time, smiled weakly and left his deli.

As Gio watched her walk out of his deli and down the street and out of his sight, his smile dropped. His heart ached and his mind raced. He couldn't believe that he had just kissed her and told her how he felt about her. He had no intention of doing that at all. He didn't intend to kiss her and tell her how he felt. But it just… happened. And now everything was out in the open, he didn't feel like he was holding anything back or lying to anyone anymore and that was a relief. But he still wasn't really any closer to being with Betty like he wanted and he may never be. Because she didn't love him, she loved Henry and Henry proposed to her.

If she said yes to Henry…Gio realized that he would _never _have a chance with her. And that would hurt, that would hurt very badly. She would be out of his life for good. He wouldn't even get to see her anymore, because she would be with Henry in Tucson. Gio knew how horrible that would be, but he knew it was out of his hands. All he could do was wait and hope. Wait for Betty's decision and hope that maybe just maybe even if it was a very small chance that he could some day be with the woman that he loved.

Gio continued to think about Betty as he finished closing up the deli for the night.


	37. Chapter 37

Thank you for the review and comments **Beatrice**. I appreciate it. :)

**Chapter 37**

Betty opened the door of her house and went inside. She looked to see if anyone was around. She didn't see anyone and figured they were all in their bedrooms. Betty was relieved. She didn't really want to see anyone right now. She needed to be alone . She needed to think about Henry and his proposal. She had to figure out what to do about that. And Gio had told her that he loved her. That had come out of left field. Betty touched her lips remembering their kiss. That kiss was very powerful and very…. There were a lot of adjectives that Betty could use to describe that kiss, and she needed to think about it. What did that kiss mean for her and Gio? Betty knew now that he loved her, something she wasn't aware of before, but what did that mean for them, for their friendship? Betty knew that she really needed to think about things. As she made her way towards the stairs she saw Hilda come into the living room.

"Hey Betty you're home. You were out for a while." Hilda stated looking at her sister curiously.

Betty nodded silenty, the events of the night spinning through her mind.

Hilda noticed the solemn look on her sister's face. She wondered if something was wrong with her. "Betty is everything okay?" She asked concerned. Betty thought about lying and saying yes so that she could go up to her room and think by herself. But she realized that Hilda was a very good listener and that maybe she could give her some solid advice about what to about the situation with Henry and Gio. Betty turned to face Hilda a weary look on her face. "Not exactly Hilda… I need to talk to you."

Hilda nodded. "Come over and sit on the couch with me and tell me what is wrong Betty." Betty followed her sister to the couch and put her sandwich on the table. "Where do I begin? A lot happened tonight Hilda with Henry and then Gio."

"What happened with Henry and Gio?" Hilda questioned.

"Well Henry asked me to marry him." Betty informed her.

Hilda eyes widened. "What?! Betty really… wow! What did you say to him?"

"I told him that I needed to think about it. That I needed time to think things through before I could give him a clear answer."

"That was a wise choice, Betty."

"Yeah, and he understands that I need time to think things through. And I do… Marrying Henry would be such a big decision, I need time to process things and figure out if I want to marry him or not."

Hilda nodded. "It is definitely something that you need to think about. I mean Henry wants to move back to Tuscon after his child is born, and well of course you would be living with him and the baby, and that's a big thing, plus your family is here, as well as Mode. You definitely need to think about things Betty before you make your decision."

"I know." Betty paused before she told Hilda about what else had happened that night. "Hilda there is something else I need to talk to you about. It's about Gio… Gio told me that he was in love with me tonight. And we kissed."

Hilda became quiet. For a few moments she didn't say anything. Betty was wondering why her sister was so quiet. She was expecting her to be surprised like she was about Henry's proposal.

"Hilda… Gio told me that he loved me, what do you think about that?"

Hilda gave Betty a knowing look. "It took him long enough." She stated.

Now it was Betty's turn to be surprised. "What? What do you mean it took him long enough?"

Hilda sighed and put her hand on Betty's shoulder. "Oh, Betty…I'm not surprised about Gio loving you. I mean I had suspected he had feelings for you for months. I wasn't so sure about it being as deep as love, but I can't really say it surprises me"

Betty was surprised. "You knew he had feelings for me and you didn't tell me?" She questioned.

Hilda shook her head. "At first I wasn't so sure… but that night that we were out dancing with you and Henry, I saw the way that he was looking at you. I thought that maybe he had feelings for you. And then when he took me home, I called him out on it. He kind of denied it, but I didn't really believe him. It's why I never went out with him again."

Betty was surprised by what her sister had told her.

Hilda continued talking. "I didn't want to say anything to you about it, because you were with Henry. You guys only had a certain amount of time left together, and I thought that you should spend it focusing on him and not really worrying about Gio's feelings for you. I didn't tell you about Gio because I didn't want to complicate even more your already complicated love life. I thought it was the right thing to do."

Betty nodded taking in what her sister had said. "I understand Hilda. With everything that has been going on with Henry, Charlie and the baby, I can understand why you didn't want to tell me about Gio's feelings for me."

"And how do you feel now that you do know the truth about his feelings?"

"I'm not really sure."

Hilda nodded and moved a little closer to her sister. "So he told you tonight? Where? When? Before or After Henry proposed? And you guys kissed? You have to tell me about _that_."

"He told me at his deli, after Henry had proposed to me. After Henry had asked me to marry him, I decided to go out and try to clear my mind. I was out for a while, and then I got a little hungry. I knew Gio's deli was nearby so I went there. It was almost closing time, but Gio still offered to make me a sandwich. While he was making it I decided to ask him about what I should do about Henry…"

"Oh, Betty you told him about that? I can imagine the expression on his face."

Betty threw her hands up. "I didn't know he was in love with me, maybe if I had known, I wouldn't have brought up the subject of Henry's proposal the way I did and I certainly would not have asked him for advice on how to deal with it… But I didn't know and I did. And…"

"And how did he react? What did he say? I need details girl."

Betty looked at Hilda. "He looked kind of sad and then he said he couldn't help me. I had no idea what was wrong with him. But I pushed him, to tell me his thoughts about Henry's proposal. I pushed him to tell me how he felt about it and to give me advice on what I should do."

"And that's when he told you that he loved you?" Hilda asked excitedly.

Betty gave her a smile. "Not exactly. He gave me advice. He told me that if following my dreams meant more to me than marrying Henry at this point in my life than to follow them."

"That sounds like good advice." Hilda commented.

"Yeah I thought so too… But then he told me something else. He told me that if I loved Henry more than anything and wanted to be with Henry more than anything then I should be with Henry. He seemed to be in deep thought after he told me that, and I decided to leave him to his thoughts and then…"

Hilda smiled. "Then he told you that he loved you."

Betty's face grew warm thinking about her and Gio's kiss and his declaration of love. "He told me to wait and so I stopped walking. And then he kissed me. Hilda it was like…" Betty searched for the words to describe her and Gio's kiss. "Powerful, and Passionate, and tender, and _long." _Betty blushed. "I should have pulled away from him sooner, the kiss shouldn't have gone on as long as it did."

Hilda smiled.

"I mean I was startled that he did it, I even dropped my sandwich. But then we just continued kissing, for a long time. Then I pulled away." Betty looked embarrassed. "I could have pulled away from him sooner…I don't know why I didn't… I should have." She looked at Hilda sheepishly.

"Hmm…" Hilda wondered. "You keep saying 'we' kept kissing for a long time. You didn't just stand there and let him kiss you? You kissed him back?"

Betty thought back to the kiss and remembered grabbing Gio's face. She did eventually pull away from him but she didn't resist him when he was kissing her.

"Yes." She admitted hesitantly.

Hilda eyes widened. "Wow…"

A worried look came across Betty's face. "I don't why I did, Hilda, I don't know… he was so …passionate, maybe I just got caught up in it…I don't know." Betty looked at her helplessly.

"Or ..." A sly look came across Hilda face. "Maybe you liked it and wanted to kiss him back."

"Hilda!" Betty was astonished by her sister's suggestion. "No… I love Henry."

Hilda sighed. "I know you love Henry, Betty. But that doesn't mean that maybe you don't have some sort of feelings for Gio. You said you kissed him back. You returned his kiss, maybe because deep down…"

"We're just friends." Betty interjected quickly.

"Yeah, but he's in love with you Betty. You guys have spent time together. He's attractive and has a lot of good qualities about him. It's possible that you.."

"I'm not in love with him." Betty stated firmly.

"That maybe you like him more than a friend." Hilda continued. "Maybe you like him more than you're willing to admit. Or maybe you are attracted to him and enjoyed that he was kissing you. Geesh Betty, no one said you had to dump Henry and move onto Gio. I'm just saying maybe you do feel something for Gio romantically. You might not be in love with him, but you could feel something for him. Something that explains why you kissed him back, and why he was the first person that you told about your proposal, unless you told someone else?"

Betty shook her head. "No he was the first person I told."

"Okay, it's safe to say that you trust him. And that you care about him. You depend on him sometimes, you told me he used to help you review your writing assignments…"

Betty nodded. "He did help me out with my writing. I used to read some of my assignments to him and he would give me constructive criticism."

"Okay, well maybe since you have gotten to know him and spend some time with him, you have developed feelings for Gio." Hilda suggested. "That would explain why you kissed him back." Hilda laughed. "Or you could have done that because he is a good kisser."

Betty thought about what Hilda had said. She _did _kiss Gio back. But that didn't mean that she had feelings for him. Or did it? Betty knew that she wasn't in love with Gio, she was in love with Henry. But what if she did have romantic feelings for Gio? Betty didn't know how she was going to deal with things if she did. She definitely needed to examine her feelings about Gio more.

"So… after you guys kissed, he told you that he loved you then. What exactly did he say to you?"

Betty told Hilda all the things that Gio, said about her, and how he professed his love for her. Hilda listened intently smiling at the stuff that Gio had said about Betty.

"Wow, Betty." She commented happily. "It sounds like he really loves you."

Betty nodded. "I believe that he does too."

Hilda smiled at her. "You are so lucky Betty. You have two wonderful guys that are in love with you. I wish that I could find one man that felt that way about me."

"You will eventually find a man that will fall deeply in love with you Hilda. Don't give up hope."

"I won't."

Betty and Hilda talked for a little while longer about Henry and Gio and then they decided to turn in for the night. Before they did Hilda told Betty to really think about what she wanted to do about Henry's proposal as well as really examine her feelings for Gio. Betty promised that she would and went upstairs to get ready for bed.


	38. Chapter 38

-1**Chapter 38**

Gio had finished putting everything away in the deli and was getting ready to head home for the night. As he was getting ready to head out he heard someone banging loudly on the door of his deli. Gio turned to see who it was. He saw Amanda with a very angry expression on her face banging against the door of the deli with her hand.

_What is she doing here? _Gio wondered to himself. Amanda kept banging on the door of his deli. "Hey, let me in!" She called out loudly. "Okay.. Okay…" Gio said and went and unlocked the door. Amanda came in pushing past Gio.

"Amanda what do you want?" Gio asked her. "My deli is closed for the night. I was just getting ready to go home."

Amanda turned to Gio, the angry expression still on her face. "Your friend stood me up!" She told him and went to sit down at a stool in front of the countertop. Gio turned the light on so that they both could see better.

"Kyle stood you up?" He asked surprised. "That doesn't sound like him."

"Yes he stood me up! I waited three hours at the Club for him and he never showed. I tried calling him several times but he wouldn't answer his phone. I can't believe he stood me up. Who gets stood up at a Passion Clippers concert?" Amanda frowned.

"I can't believe this. I thought he might be my dream guy and then he doesn't even show for our date." Amanda put her head on the countertop and rested it there for a few moments. She then looked up at Gio.

"Kyle isn't my dream man, even though I thought that he was. Linda said you were supposed to lead me to my dream man, and Kyle is a friend of yours. When he asked me out I thought that he might be my dream guy…" Amanda looked at Gio wistfully. "I guess I was mistaken. Dream guys don't stand up their dates."

"Hey now.." Gio sat down beside Amanda. "I think that you are jumping to conclusions here. Kyle just isn't the type of guy that would stand up a pretty girl. That's not who he is."

"Well, you must not know him that well, because that is exactly what he did. He didn't show up and then he wouldn't answer his phone when I called him."

Gio shook his head. "I know Kyle very well. It is not like him to do something like this Something must have happened. Let me see if I can reach him." Gio pulled out his cell phone and tried to call Kyle. After a few minutes of trying to contact him but to no avail, he hung up. "He must have his phone off. That's strange. He almost never turns his phone off."

Amanda sighed. "But he just _happened _to have it turned off for the night of our date. He is just another loser."

Gio shook his head. "Kyle is _not_ a loser, something must have come up. I'll try him again later or will talk to him when I see him. I'll find out what happened Amanda."

Amanda scowled. "Whatever, I'm out of here." She got up to leave, stopping at Gio's door to look outside. "Hey…my cab is gone! Ugh! I told that bozo to wait and he didn't. He left me!"

"Did you pay him?" Gio asked.

"Well yeah, he told me the total, and I gave him some money, I thought that he was billing me for the first part of the ride. Cab drivers have done that to me before. I told him to wait for me, while I went inside and talked to you. Apparently the idiot can't hear because that well because he's gone!"

Gio got up from the counter. "Where do you live?" He asked. "I was about to head home for the night. I can drop you off where you live. Just give me the directions."

"Okay." Amanda gave Gio directions to her apartment building. They both went outside and got into Gio's van. He started to drive the way to Amanda's apartment building, once he got there he slowed his car down and noticed that the building was on fire. There were several people standing outside, many of them looking shaken up, there was also a fire truck and several firemen who were trying to put out the fire. It was a pretty big fire.

Amanda and Gio got out of the car and went near the building. Amanda turned to one of the women standing outside. "What happened?" She asked her. "We don't know." The woman admitted. "A little while ago, the smoke detectors started going off and some of us had smelled a lot of smoke. A lot of people started evacuating the building to come outside. It was a good thing that we did, because the fire had started spreading by then."

"Well, you don't know how it started?" Amanda asked.

"We don't. I heard it started in room 303, and started to spread. It has destroyed at least five of the rooms on that floor, including 304, 305, 306, and 307."

Amanda's eyes widened. "I live in apartment 306!" She exclaimed.

The woman looked at her sympathetically. "Oh, honey I'm sorry, but your apartment has been destroyed."

Amanda started to panic. "But everything I own is in that apartment. My TV, my radio, my computer, my _clothes, _oh my _clothes!_" Amanda started to shake and almost collapsed but Gio had been standing beside her and caught her. "Whoa, it's okay." He picked her up.

Amanda looked at him, panic in her eyes. "It's _not_ okay. My stuff is gone, Gio. _All _of it. And I'm homeless." Amanda looked very afraid. "Now Wait.." Gio said guiding her farther away from the scene to talk to her and try to calm her down.

"The fire is still going on and it looks like they are having a difficult time putting it out. If it continues it will probably burn down a some more apartments. It looks like there are going to be several people who are going to lose their apartments." Gio stated. He started to think. "Maybe there is some place that they will have everyone go to who has lost their apartment."

"You mean like a shelter? I--I don't want to go there. I don't want to be crammed in with all those people, It would be very uncomfortable… No shelter…"

"Amanda okay.. .okay, do you have any friends you can stay with?"

"Well there's Marc."

"Call Marc."

"But he's out of town until next Friday. He's not going to be back until a week from now. He's doing some business for Wilhemina. And he lost his spare key. I told him to make another one, but I don't think that he has." Amanda looked at Gio with a very worried expression on her face.

"Okay what about your other friends, can you call one of them?"

Amanda made a face. "Well… I don't know, most of them are probably out partying and doing who knows what and are not at their homes half the time anyways. Two of them have kids, who I don't like to be around, and another one is out of town."

Gio looked perplexed. "Amanda there has got to be someone you can stay with."

She shrugged and looked at him.

"How about a hotel?" Gio suggested. "Do you have enough money to stay there for a week until Marc comes back. I think that would be the best thing to do."

"Well… I think…Wait a minute… I forgot my purse!"

"What?" Gio asked.

"I forgot my purse! I must have left it in the cab. I was so upset about your loser friend not showing up, that I was in a rush to get to you and chew you out about it. I can't believe that I left my purse."

"Call the cab company." Gio instructed her. "Call them and tell them what happened. We have to locate your purse."

Gio gave Amanda his cell phone. She dialed the cab company and talked with someone for a while. Gio watched as a very frustrated look come across her face while she was talking on the phone.

"What do you mean, he says it's not there? Of course, it's there. I left it in his cab! I don't care if he took three other customers home after he dropped me off. What do you mean one of them must have picked it up? Are you kidding me?! Well call them, all three of them, find my purse. You don't know their names, what type of moronic cab driver doesn't ask his customers names. Well… You can just kiss it!" Amanda hung up looking very distraught. She looked at Gio. "My purse is gone." She handed him back his cell phone.

"This night just keeps getting worse and worse. I got stood up, I'm homeless, I have no TV, no computer, no radio, no _clothes_. Marc's out of town, so I can't stay with him. My purse is gone, it had all my credit cards in it, some cash, my driver's license, make up…everything. I'm in trouble. Deep, Deep trouble. I might as well go fall off the face of the earth." Amanda looked at Gio trying to fight back tears.

Gio felt sorry for Amanda. He wasn't sure what to do. She was in a pretty bad predicament, and he wanted to help her but he wasn't sure how. _Maybe_… He thought to himself. _Should I do that? _He looked up at her, at her red eyes, and her incredibly sad expression. He decided that he would.

"Amanda…" He began hesitantly. "If you want to… you could stay with me. Until Marc comes back or until by some chance your purse shows up. I have an extra bedroom, so you could sleep in that. I have plenty of food, an extra TV, you can use my computer if you needed to…"

Amanda smiled. _The sandwich guy is sweet. _She thought to herself. Amanda thought about the options they had went over, the ones that weren't going to happen, the ones that she didn't want to do. Amanda then decided that staying with Gio wasn't such a bad idea. He seemed nice enough and was kind enough to offer her a place to stay. And it would only be for a week until Marc came back. Amanda decided to take him up on his offer. "Okay, Gio. Thank You. Yeah, I'll stay with you."

Gio nodded. "Okay then, it's settled. We can go home, unless you wanted to talk to someone?"

Amanda shook her head. "No, I just want to get out of here, I'll call the landlord tomorrow and maybe try to settle some things, but tonight I just want to get out of here." They both went over to Gio's van and got in. Gio started up the car and began to drive the way to his apartment. On the way there Amanda realized something. "Oh, no!" She exclaimed.

"What is it Amanda?" Gio asked concerned.

"What am I going to do about clothes, and toiletries?" She asked worried.

"Well I can give you money for toiletries." Gio offered. "But for clothes.. hmm" He tried to think of what to do. An idea came to Amanda's mind. "Before we go to your place, take me to Mode."

Gio was confused. "Mode, why do you want to go there? Isn't it closed this time of night?"

"You'll see why I want to go, take me there please." Gio did as Amanda asked and drove her to Mode. Amanda went up to the front of the building and saw a custodian working on the inside. She motioned for him to open the door for her. The custodian looked at her for a few moments and then reluctantly opened the door for her.

Gio watched as Amanda talked to the custodian for a few minutes, and then he saw the custodian nod, Amanda giving him a hug and running past him. Gio then waited for a good thirty minutes before Amanda came out. He saw her come out with several bags in her hands. She put all the bags inside the back of his van and climbed back into the passenger's seat. Gio turned and looked at all the bags in the back. "What's all that?" He asked.

Amanda smirked. "Clothes, shoes, jewelry, everything I need to keep looking fabulous for the next several days."

"Where did you get that from?" Gio asked curiously.

"The closet. It's a place at Mode where we keep a lot of the clothes from different designers. There are clothes there for the different fashion seasons. I just went and picked up some things."

"It looks like you _emptied _the closet." Gio commented.

"Well, not quite, but at least I have clothes now." Amanda stated happily.

Gio nodded, smiling to himself. He started the car back up, and began to drive back to his apartment. On his way there he stopped by a store, and gave Amanda some money so that she could get toiletries as well as some undergarments. He then took her home to his apartment and helped her get settled in.


	39. Chapter 39

-1**Chapter 39**

"Good morning Betty." Hilda greeted her sister when she saw her walk into the living room. "Good morning Hilda." Betty greeted her back. "Hey Betty sit down for a second I want to talk to you." Betty sat down on the couch to speak with her sister. "What did you want to talk about Hilda?" Betty asked.

"Well,…" Hilda began. "I've been wondering if you have given any more thought to what you are going to do about your situations with Henry and Gio?"

Betty nodded. "I still don't know if I am going to marry Henry or not. But I've given it some deep thought."

"And what about Gio?" Hilda asked. "Have you thought about your feelings for Gio at all and his feelings for you?"

Betty sighed. "I have..and I don't know what to make of everything. I think that I might…have stronger feelings for him than I thought I did. I don't know Hilda." Betty looked at her with a puzzled look on her face. "I can't… I can't get our kiss out of my mind. I keep thinking about it."

"That good huh?" Hilda teased.

Betty tried not to smile. "It was _nice_…okay?" Her expression became serious. "But I keep thinking about it, and about everything that he said to me. He loves me a lot , and he's a good guy, Hilda. He deserves to be loved as much as he loves me. And I'm in love with Henry, and he asked me to marry him and with Gio… I care about him. I do, maybe more than I realized, but I don't know if whatever feelings I have for Gio could ever top what I feel for Henry." Betty looked at Hilda with a worried look on her face.

"I don't know Hilda, I don't know what to do. I love Henry, but I think I feel something for Gio. Henry loves me and wants me to marry him. That seems like the only way that we could stay together. But If I marry him I would have to go live in Tucson. Away from my family, my friends, Mode." She paused and continued. "And Gio is in love with me, and I think that I have some feelings for him, and if I didn't marry Henry and stayed here in New York, maybe after a while we could start something up and maybe I could possibly eventually feel for him the way that he feels for.. Oh I don't know! What I am saying?"

"How you feel." Hilda stated. "And there is nothing wrong with it. You're trying to figure things out. You have two wonderful, attractive men who love you and you are trying to figure out which one to choose."

"It is so much more complicated than that." Betty admitted. "We are talking about more than just two different men, we're talking about a decision that could change my life forever, a possible new life, new move, a new career even. We're talking about staying here in New York, following my dreams and possibly when I'm ready starting a new relationship. It's more than just choosing between Henry and Gio it's choosing between two different lives. And it's not something that I need to take lightly."

Hilda nodded. "I get it Betty. I do. And I want you to know no matter what you decide to do I'm going to support you all the way."

Betty hugged her sister. "Thanks Hilda."

Hilda smiled at her. Then she spoke again. "But Betty, I'm not trying to steer you in a particular direction, but I think you should talk to Gio. Tell him that you have feelings for him."

Betty looked hesitant. "I can't do that Hilda."

"Why not?"

"Because I don't want to lead him on. He's in love with me, and my feelings for him, they're not there yet."

"_Yet?" _Hilda questioned trying not to smile.

"You know what I mean, I'm not where he is right now. And we can't forget that I'm still with Henry. I might end up marrying him. I can't tell Gio that I have feelings for him when I might end up marrying another man. That would be cruel. He doesn't deserve to be strung along like that."

"It would be honest." Hilda remarked.

"Honest but cruel, and risky…"

"Why risky?"

Betty thought for a moment. "Because well, because…" She wasn't quite sure what to say.

"Because you're afraid you two are going to kiss again?" Hilda guessed.

Betty blushed. "I don't think we are going to kiss again, at least not anytime soon. We can't. Not as long as I'm with Henry. I can't let that happen."

"But you let it happen last time." Hilda teased her.

"I didn't _let _it happen last time. He caught me off guard. I wasn't expecting him to kiss me and I certainly wasn't expecting him to tell me he was in love with me. I… I was in _shock."_

Hilda laughed. "Yeah. You were in such _shock_ that you kissed him for how long, before you pulled back?"

Betty sighed. "Hilda…"

Hilda smiled mischievously . "Relax Betty I'm just teasing you." Her face became more serious. "But I really think you should talk to Gio about your feelings for him."

Betty looked unsure. "I don't know Hilda…."

"Just think about it Betty. And whatever you do don't completely avoid him. There is nothing worse than being in love with someone and having them avoid you, because they don't want to deal with your feelings for them. Been there way too many times, and I have to say that really hurts. Especially if you were already friends to begin with. If you do that, not only could you lose someone who loves you, but you could lose your friend as well. Don't do that to Gio."

Betty nodded taking in Hilda's advice. "I guess I might talk to him. I'm not quite sure what to say…but I might talk to him about my feelings."

Hilda nodded. "Good."

Betty looked down at her watch. "I'm going to get ready to leave. Today I'm going into work a few hours late, because I have to run some errands for Mode that need to be done before I get there. Maybe I'll stop by and see Gio and talk to him."

"That a girl." Hilda remarked smiling. Betty got up from the couch, grabbed her purse and told Hilda good-bye. She left to run the errands and decided to go see Gio, before she went to work.


	40. Chapter 40

-1**Chapter 40**

Betty walked down the hallway of the floor that Gio stayed on in his apartment building. He had told her where he had lived before, and she had decided to come see him. She knew that it was a bold move, but since Gio probably wouldn't be at his deli until around eleven and she would be at work then, she decided to go to his apartment. Betty hoped that she wasn't making a mistake by coming to his apartment and telling him about her feelings. She felt really nervous about the whole thing and was starting to wonder if Hilda's advice about talking to Gio was the best thing to do. She almost turned back around and left before she got to his door. But she decided to suck it up and talk to him. Betty walked to his door and knocked a few times. She heard rustling behind the door and then it opened.

"Betty! What are you doing here?" Amanda asked.

Betty stared at Amanda in shock. She was wearing just a long T-shirt, the type that people go to sleep in. Amanda's face looked like she had just woken up.

_What is Amanda doing here?_ Betty wondered to herself. _Did Amanda spend the night here at Gio's apartment?_

"I--I came to see Gio." Betty stammered out.

Amanda smirked. "Well he's in the shower. We just woke up."

Betty's head started spinning. Amanda did spend the night here!

"Oh--I--" She was at a loss for words.

"I had the best sleep last night." Amanda commented nonchalantly. "His bedroom is so nice, the bed was so soft and cozy, it was the best night that I had in a really long time." Amanda sighed happily. "With a night like last night, I might stay here longer than I planned."

Betty was stunned. Amanda had not only spent the night with Gio, she was living with him!

"You're living here?" Betty asked incredulously.

"Only for a little while. Gio practically _begged_ me to stay, and well I couldn't say no to him. He's such a good guy, he's actually taking very good care of me. He's really dependable you know."

Betty frowned. "Well, I guess he is to _you_, I mean…"

"He really is. When he gets out of the shower, he's going to make me some chocolate chip waffles. He promised that he would. And then he's going to have to go to work. I know he'll miss me while he's gone." Amanda stated confidently.

Amanda looked at Betty. "Oh yeah, tell everyone that I'm not going to be at Mode today, I have important stuff to do." She paused thinking. "You think Gio might want to watch a movie with me tonight? Maybe we could find something good on TV and we could watch it together. Maybe pop some popcorn and get _cozy_. It would be cool to watch a movie with him. He has treated me so well. Asking me to move in, paying for things that I need, cooking for me,... I guess I shouldn't be too surprised. He has constantly been doing nice things for me for a while now. I feel like we are developing a really good relationship." Amanda smiled. "You know what? I think he l_oves_ me."

Betty felt like she was going to be sick. She couldn't take anymore of Amanda rambling on about Gio and their developing _relationship_. Betty's head hurt from listening to all the stuff that Amanda said that Gio was doing for her. Betty was baffled and hurt. She had to get out of there away from Gio's apartment, away from Amanda, away from him making her waffles and doing other stuff for her.

"I have to go Amanda."

Amanda shrugged. "Okay..did you want me to tell Gio that you stopped by or tell him something for you?"

Betty shook her head. "No. Don't tell him anything. Pretend like I wasn't even here."

Amanda smirked. "That's easy to do." She closed the door in Betty's face and Betty stood outside of Gio's apartment for a few moments longer trying to process what had just happened. _Gio and Amanda? _She had no idea that this had been going on. Betty was confused and hurt. She wasn't sure what to think. And Amanda made it seem like it was going on for a while. Betty walked away from Gio's door, trying to figure things out. _Why did Gio tell me that he loved me? _Betty wondered to herself. _Why did he kiss me? If he's involved with Amanda, why did he say all those things to me? When he kissed me, it was so passionate. I don't get it_. _I don't understand him._ Betty thought to herself. Betty sighed deeply and made her way to Mode, her mind confused and her feelings all mixed up.


	41. Chapter 41

Thank you for the review and comments **m1ssp1ggy.** :)

**Chapter 41**

"_Gio and Amanda?" _Hilda asked shocked. "What!? Are you serious?"

"Yes, I'm serious, Hilda. I could hardly believe it myself. But I saw Amanda at Gio's apartment…" Betty's voice trailed off as she thought back to seeing Amanda at Gio's apartment earlier that day.

"Are you sure, about them Betty?" Hilda questioned still in disbelief. "That they are.."

"Yes!" Betty exclaimed. "I know it sounds strange but apparently it's true. I mean I didn't even know that anything was going on between those two. They don't even seem like each other's types." Betty sighed. "But apparently they have a romantic relationship. Amanda basically said so herself."

Hilda frowned. "They are definitely an unexpected match. But Betty why would Gio kiss you and tell you that he _loves_ you if he was involved with Amanda? That doesn't make any sense."

Betty shrugged. "I don't know Hilda. I can't figure that out either. I mean why would he do something like that? That's just… I don't understand it… I don't understand him… I thought I did, but obviously I don't."

Hilda saw the frustrated look on her sister's face and was determined to help her figure out what was going on with Gio.

"Okay…well maybe he meant what he said about being in love with you. Maybe it's still true that he felt this way for a while, even though he has become involved with Amanda. I mean you are with Henry, and even though Gio loves you he could have tried to move on with Amanda. When you told him about Henry's proposal, maybe that is when it finally hit him that he should just tell you how he feels. Regardless of the fact that you two are seeing other people." Hilda paused thinking some more.

"Maybe he thought if he took a chance and told you how he felt, something good might happen. But nothing really happened, except that you found out the truth about his feelings. And well you did _kiss_… But maybe he thought that nothing was going to _ever_ really happen between you two and he decided to continue to see Amanda." Hilda rationalized.

Betty looked confused. "I don't know Hilda. That really doesn't make me feel any better. I mean, I didn't even know that he and Amanda were like _that. _He hasn't mentioned anything to me about her, and I see Amanda at work all the time. I haven't heard her mention that she was dating Gio." Betty thought for a moment. "Even though she has mentioned him saving her live a couple of times, and something about a psychic and a dream guy… I wasn't paying a whole lot of attention to her when she was saying those things."

Betty frowned. "This whole things bothers me. I feel like I have been kept in the dark, and deceived in some way. I know that maybe I shouldn't feel this way. But I do. I mean Gio… he took me out for my birthday. He made sure I had a good time. We talked about work, and our families, our friends… Why didn't he tell me about Amanda then? He had an opportunity to do so. And… Amanda was at the club, we spoke to her, he even saved her from being knocked in the head with a beer bottle. I didn't get the vibe then that something was go on between those two…"

"Maybe he wasn't involved with her then?" Hilda suggested.

Betty shook her head. "I think that maybe he was. Amanda made it seem like something has been going on with them for a while. But I never noticed anything romantic going on between them. This seems completely out of left field."

"Maybe he didn't want anyone to know that he was seeing her?"

"That's not Gio. At least I don't think that is the way that he is. But maybe it is… I don't know." Betty sighed. "I don't think he is the type of man that would hide his relationship with a woman from anyone. He seems like he's the type that would show the woman he was with to the world, like he'd be proud to be with her. He seems so passionate, and I would think more open than that. I don't see why he would hide her from anyone."

"Maybe she has a lot of annoying traits, maybe he thought she would embarrass him or something." Hilda guessed.

"Well she does have a lot of annoying traits, she is _Amanda. _But if he felt that way about her why get involved with her and why would he _stay_ involved with her? Why lead her on like that, why settle like that? I'm no fan of Amanda, but she deserves to be treated better than that."

Hilda nodded. "I agree with that. He shouldn't be leading her on if that's what he is doing. As for him settling, maybe to him anyone that he chooses to have a relationship with is settling. Because he can't be with the woman that he loves--_You_."

The realization of what Hilda told Betty sunk in. Hilda was right. Maybe Gio was settling, because that is the only thing that he felt he could do. A lot of emotions were going through her. A little understanding, hurt, confusion, and even a little _jealously_? Betty couldn't be jealous of Amanda and Gio, could she? No, she couldn't be jealous of them. Why would she be jealous? She didn't think she had a reason to be jealous, or really a right to be jealous. Gio wasn't obligated to stay single while he pined over her. And she was with Henry, so Gio didn't owe her anything. Maybe she wasn't jealous but wistful? But why would I be _wistful_? Betty wondered to herself. But that didn't make a whole lot of sense either. Betty's thoughts and feelings were jumbled up and she knew she had to untangle them soon, before things got really complicated.

Hilda leaned forward. "Betty I don't really know everything that is going on with Gio and Amanda. But what I do know is that it bothers you. A _lot. _You went over to his apartment to tell him that you have some feelings for him, and then found out about him and Amanda. You were blind sighted by that." Hilda looked at her sister curiously. "What are you going to do?"

Betty looked down at her hands, deep in thought. "Nothing." She sighed. "I guess that would be the best thing to do. Gio can see whoever he wants, we're not together, I'm still with Henry. I do love Henry, I might even marry him…I can't expect Gio to wait around for me forever, and if I marry Henry… Even if Gio wasn't involved with Amanda, he would have still moved on."

"You don't want to talk to him, and still tell him about your feelings?" Hilda asked.

"Hilda no..I can't!" Betty exclaimed surprised at how anxious she sounded. "Not when he is with Amanda. That would just complicate things even more. And I still don't even know what I am going to do about Henry… I have to let Gio live his life. I can't tell him about any of my feelings for him. I'm definitely not going back over to that apartment. I don't want to see him and Amanda…" Betty shuddered. "I'm not going back over there again."

Hilda gave her sister a concerned look. "Are you sure this is what you want to do Betty? You want to keep your feelings for Gio to yourself?"

"It's the best thing to do. I still have to figure out what I am going to do about Henry and Gio is with Amanda… I think it's the best thing."

"Okay…" Hilda remarked unconvinced.

"It really is the best thing." Betty looked down at her watch. "Hey, Hilda, I'm going to go work on my writing, I'll talk to you later." Betty went upstairs to work on her writing, hoping that would take her mind off of Henry and Gio for a while.


	42. Chapter 42

-1**Chapter 42**

"You keep treating me so good, I just might marry you. Or you could adopt me or something." Amanda stated as Gio put down a plate of food in front of her.

"I'm too good for you and you're a little too old to adopt." Gio joked. He placed his plate on the table and sat down.

Amanda looked at Gio and smirked. "You're not so bad…" She picked up the slice of pizza on her plate and bit into it. "Mmmm." She mumbled biting into it. Amanda had never tasted pizza that tasted so good before. She took some bites of the pizza then reached for a napkin to wipe her hands.

"Wow that is good!" She commented. "Who delivered?" She asked.

"It's not delivery." Gio stated.

"It's Digiorno?"

Gio laughed. "No. It's actually a recipe passed down from my grandmother. She used to make this pizza all the time for me and my siblings. She gave the recipe to my mother, and my mother taught me how to make it."

"Oh." Amanda nodded. "It's really good. You should sell it at you deli." Amanda suggested.

"With my sandwiches?"

"Why not? I've been to some sandwich shops that sell pizza before. I'm sure their pizza wasn't as good as this." She took another bite.

_Hmm. _Gio thought to himself. He had never thought of selling anything other than sandwiches at his deli. He did sell chips, salads, drinks and desserts, but sandwiches, were the main attraction at his deli. Sandwiches were his specialty. Gio served several different type of sandwiches, and he would introduce new types periodically. He thought that he had a good variety of sandwiches at his deli and he never thought of selling any other type of food as the main course. If he served Pizza that would be a little different. Gio wasn't sure he wanted to do that. Plus the pizza, was his grandmother's recipe, and that was special to him.

"Ah…I don't know. Sandwiches are my specialty, not pizza. I don't think I'm going to do that. But it's a good suggestion."

Amanda lightly shrugged and they both continued eating. After a while Amanda stopped and took a sip of her drink. She then looked at Gio and smirked. "You know you should make another one of these and take it over to Betty's house. Let her taste it and then promise to it make for her a whole lot if she gets together with you. Betty loves food, so it just might work."

Gio couldn't help but laugh at Amanda's suggestion. "Yeah _that'll _work." He commented sarcastically. He thoughts shifted to Betty and he frowned.

Amanda noticed his expression. "You know Gio… you could always actually _tell_ her how you feel about her. That could definitely help." She suggested.

Gio looked at Amanda with a serious expression on his face. "I did that."

Amanda was surprised. "You _did_?"

Gio nodded. "Yeah."

"_When_? What did she say? There has been no gossip at Mode about it. I mean Betty is not at the top of the gossip chain, but we spread stuff about her sometimes. You confessing your love hasn't made the rounds yet."

Gio sighed, thinking back to a few nights before when he had kissed Betty and told her how he felt about her. "A few nights ago. She came to the deli to talk to me. She wanted to ask my advice about Henry's marriage proposal. I…"

"Whoa!" Amanda interrupted. "The nerd proposed? Why haven't I heard about this yet? The gossip rats at Mode are slacking."

Gio nodded. "He proposed to her, the same night that she came to see me." He paused. "Amanda I… I felt so… bad when she told me that. I didn't know what to say or what type of advice to give her. I mean she was asking me what she should do about Henry. Whether or not I thought she should marry him. I didn't know what to tell her. I mean I love her, I don't want her to marry another man, But because I love her I do want her to be happy, even if that means marrying another man."

"Aww…" Amanda commented. She made a face. "Wait a minute. I'm Awwing because of Betty's love life. _Ew_." She paused thinking. "But I do like you and you can't help that you love her for some reason. I _guess."_

Gio looked at Amanda frustrated. "Amanda I love her for a lot of reasons. It isn't just one particular reason." He stated.

"If you say so." Amanda leaned a little towards Gio. "So what did you end up saying to her. I mean you told me that you said you love her and all that… but what else did you say in between? Did you try to undermine Henry's love for her? Try to make him look bad, so that she won't marry him, causing him to go back to Tucson with Strawberry Shortcake and their kid? Because if you did I would be _so_ proud of you."

Gio shook his head. "No, I didn't do that Amanda. I didn't fight dirty."

"Dirty is the best way to fight Gio." Amanda remarked. "I would do it. I mean if I ever do find my dream guy and he was with someone else, I would fight dirty for him."

"I'm not like that. That's not how I do things." Gio stated firmly.

"Suit yourself. Anyways, tell me what else you said to her."

"I told her that if she wanted to follow her dreams more than anything, than to follow her dreams. And then I told her that she if she loved Henry more than anything…well to follow him."

Amanda frowned. "Why did you do that? You basically just sent out their wedding invitations. Maybe they'll invite you and give you a slice a cake for your efforts."

"It was the right thing to do Amanda." Gio stated, his eyes filled with anguish.

"Who cares if it was right or not? You threw away your chance with Betty. All so you could play noble friend, instead of trying to steal the role of boyfriend. Which is what you _should_ have done."

Gio frowned annoyed at Amanda's comments. "I love Betty enough, to where I actually care about her happiness. If … If Henry makes her happy, then she should be with him. She does _love_ the guy, I'm just her friend. If she wants to move to Tuscon to be with him, I can't do _anything_ about that." Gio stated sadly.

Amanda saw the look on his face and knew that she had upset Gio and she felt bad about that. She really did like him. Here he was taking care of her after she had lost everything because of her apartment burning down and here she was criticizing the choices he was making concerning the woman that he loved. She thought that he was going about things all wrong, and she didn't care a lot about Betty, but she did want to help Gio out.

"Hey…" Amanda said softly looking at him. "The way that you handled things with Betty is not the way that I would have done things. But you're not ruthless and fabulous like I am. When I was born they broke the mold."

Gio tried not to smile.

Amanda reached out and touched his arm. "I'm a fabulous take no prisoner type of chick and you're a decent, caring guy. You are. And I get it. You love Betty, and you weren't going to try and turn her against Henry because of that love. Love makes people do crazy, irrational, non evil things."

This time Gio did smile.

Amanda sat back in her seat. "And you did tell her that you love her. So that counts for something." She rolled her eyes and smiled at him. "And I'm sure you told her in a way that wasn't manipulative, undermining, blah, blah, blah, in an oh so noble way. You probably took her hand and said oh Betty, sweet Betty… I love you so…" Amanda mocked.

Gio burst out laughing. Amanda was something. "That's not even what happened."

Amanda smirked. "Well tell me what happened then. How did you tell her, and why did you tell her? Was your choice to tell her driven by the nerd's proposal?"

Gio looked at her and grinned. "Well, I thought about what you said."

Amanda looked surprised. "Really?" She then smirked. "You know I shouldn't be surprised. I invade many men's thoughts, why should you be any different? So what do you remember me saying to you?"

"Well actually it is what you and Kyle told me."

Amanda made a face. "That loser that stood me up."

Gio shook his head. "Kyle is not a loser. I'm sure there is a good explanation for why he didn't meet you for your date. I tried to call him again some more times, but he still wouldn't answer. But when I do get a hold of him, I promise you that I will get to the bottom of things. I'll find out what happened."

"And if he didn't ditch me because someone died, you'll beat him up right?"

"_Of course_." Gio answered sarcastically.

"Good. Now you remembered me and loser oops, I mean Kyle saying…?"

"To take a risk. To go after what I want, to go after Betty." Gio finished. "And I thought that I should take a risk. I didn't mean that I had to fight dirty, but I could be more honest with the woman that I love. You know take a risk and tell her how I feel. So I kissed her…"

"You kissed her?!" Amanda asked surprised.

Gio smiled remembering him and Betty's kiss. "Yeah.. I did.. Man that kiss was... Her lips… were so soft…" Gio remembered how he had kissed Betty's lips, and how he had savored every moment of their kiss. "Amanda, I put _everything_ that I felt into that kiss. _Everything_ that I felt for her all this time. Everything that I should have told her a while ago. I kissed her, for as long as I could. I didn't want to let her go… But eventually she did pull away from me."

"So you had her in a death grip?"

Gio gave Amanda a look. "It wasn't a death grip. I grabbed her and I held onto her as long as I could. That kiss was our first kiss, and it could have been our last. She could end up marrying Henry." Gio paused a thoughtful expression on his face. "And if she does, well I'll never kiss her again, so yeah I held onto her for as long as I could."

Amanda nodded taking in what Gio was saying. "It sounds like you kissed her for a while."

"I did."

"And she just let you? Did she kiss you back?"

Gio thought back to their kiss again. He remembered Betty giving into their kiss at some point, returning the kiss and touching his face with her hands. He smiled at the memory.

"She did." He admitted. "She kissed me back and she also grabbed my face."

"Really? Well that's good news for you, that probably means that she feels something for you."

A hopeful look came across Gio's face. "You think she does?" He questioned. "I thought that she just got caught up in the kiss and decided to just go with it."

Amanda laughed. "Yeah, she decided to just go with a very long kiss, and she decided to grab your face just for fun." She lightly slapped his arm. "She was into it, because she probably has feelings for you. They might not be as strong as they are for the nerd, but they are there."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, I think that she has feelings for you. Why did she run and tell you of all people about Henry proposing to her anyway? You were probably like one of the first people that she told about it, if not the first. Why did she do that?"

Gio shrugged.

Amanda raised an eyebrow. "Maybe it's because she cares about you, trusts you, respects you, wanted to hear your opinion about things?"

"She mentioned those things, when she was asking for my advice." Gio admitted.

Amanda nodded. "Okay then." She thought for a moment. "You and Betty do have a relationship. It's not as strong or close as her and Henry's but it's definitely something. I mean somewhere along the way you fell in love with her. That's _huge_. Maybe somewhere, along the way she developed some feelings for you as well. She might not know that yet or maybe she does, but is not willing to admit it. But I do think that she has some romantic feelings for you."

Gio smiled. Was it possible? Could Betty have feelings for him? He wondered to himself. And if she did what did that mean for them? Gio wasn't sure what to think but Amanda's words stayed in his mind. He and Amanda continued to eat dinner and talk with each other, enjoying each other's company.


	43. Chapter 43

Thanks for the review and comments **m1ssp1ggy.** I appreciate it. :)

**Chapter 43**

"Amanda can you please move out of the way!" Betty told Amanda harshly, as she was trying to move around her.

Amanda stepped aside so that Betty could pass by. "Whoa, who went and spit on your breakfast burrito Betty?" She asked smirking.

"Don't start Amanda!" Betty warned.

Amanda raised her eyebrow. _What is up with Betty? _She wondered to herself. _She seems mighty hostile this morning._

"What's the matter did you wake up on the crabby side of the bed this morning? Why are you not your usual super happy, over the top sugary sweet self?" Amanda asked.

"Nothing's wrong, I-- I just don't want to get into it with you this morning."

"Huh? I have barely started to insult you and you're already jumping down my throat." Amanda looked Betty over. "You look upset. Did you not eat this morning? Did you not get enough sleep or something?" Amanda smiled. "I had the most amazing sleep last night…"

Betty did not want to hear the end of that sentence. "Good for you. I'm glad you had such a nice sleep in _Gio's_ soft, cozy bedroom. I'm glad that things are working out for you two. I'm sure you both had a good sleep last night. I'm sure you probably had another good breakfast this morning as well, since he likes to make you waffles." Betty stated sharply grabbing a stapler off of Amanda's desk and stapling the papers in her hand.

Amanda looked at Betty curiously. _What is that about? _She wondered to herself. _Hmmm_…

"Yeah I had a good night sleep last night. Gio's bed is nice and cozy, and comfortable. I had another great night of sleep last night. Ever since I moved in with Gio it's been one awesome night of sleep after another. I might never leave his place." Amanda paused. "And he didn't' make me waffles this morning. He made me blueberry pancakes, and an omelet. It was really good. He's a wonderful cook you know, he's always making me these delicious meals…"

Betty frowned. She really wasn't in the mood to hear Amanda, brag about her and Gio's relationship right now. It bothered her.

"That's nice, Amanda." She commented sarcastically.

Amanda looked at Betty. "So are you going to marry the nerd or not?" She asked abruptly.

Betty looked at Amanda surprised. How did she know about Henry's proposal? Betty wondered. The only people she had told were Gio, Hilda, and Christina.

"How did you know that Henry proposed to me?" Betty asked.

"Gio told me. He told me Friday at dinner."

Betty gave Amanda a funny look. "He told you that? You two were discussing me at dinner?"

Amanda smirked. "He tells me _everything_. And yes we were chatting about you over his grandmother's pizza."

Betty looked confused. "His grandmother made you two a pizza?"

"No, the peeezza was her r.eccipee. He made me dinner and we taah-lllked about you." Amanda said more slowly to make things clearer for Betty.

"I heard you Amanda." Betty stated rolling her eyes. "I just don't understand why I would be a subject that you two talk about at home."

Amanda raised an eyebrow. "Did you seriously just ask that question?"

Betty looked at Amanda exasperated. "Yes, I did, I don't know why he would talk about me when he has _you_ to focus on and keep him occupied."

Amanda thought for a moment about what Betty had just said. "Well, you have a point, I am a more interesting subject than you are. I am incredibly interesting, and engaging… speaking of are you going to get engaged to the nerd or not? And when is Charlie going to have her baby? She's been pregnant for 100 years now. When is her baby due, the month of Nevereveruary?"

"Not that it is any of your business, but she is due in a couple of more weeks." Betty informed Amanda. She looked around Amanda's desk. "Do you have any paper clips I can borrow?"

Amanda went around her desk, opened one of the drawers and retrieved some paper clips. She held out her hand and gave the paper clips to Betty. "Thank you." Betty said and took the paper clips.

Amanda looked at Betty. "You know Betty you have a big decision to make whether or not you are going to get married to the nerd or not. And that's going to be a tough decision for you to make, and now that you know that Gio is in love with you…"

Betty frowned. "Gio told you that…?"

"That he's in love with you, and that you guys kissed for like hours. Yeah he told me." Amanda smirked. "I told you Betty he tells me _everything_. We are very honest with each other, that is one of the things that makes our relationship so special."

Betty put down the papers on Amanda's desk and looked at Amanda, with a look of disbelief on her face. "He tells you he's in love with me and you're okay with that? It doesn't bother you that he's in love with me, even though you two are _living_ together?"

Amanda looked confused. "Why would it bother me that he loves you? I mean yeah I don't like you all that much. You have horrible taste in clothes, you can be over the top cheerful, you have a whole bunch of annoying qualities, but for some reason Gio loves you. Well, actually he said there were several reasons why he loves you, and I'm okay with that. I do want him to be happy even if it's with _you."_

Betty was very confused. "You're okay with that? But I thought that you and Gio… aren't you guys…?"

"We have this connection, you know I can't explain it. But we understand each other. Who would have thunk it? I know how he feels about you, and I get it. You know I just want him to be happy. And if you make him happy…" Amanda gave Betty a serious look. "I care about Gio Betty, he's saved my life twice now, and he's supporting me while I am going through a pretty rough point in my life. He's also going to end up doing some other really big and wonderful things for me. He loves you and well…I think that he might end up getting hurt by you. He is definitely going to be hurt if you go and marry Henry. If he gets hurt…" Amanda looked at Betty. "Well, I'm going to be there for him, supporting him like he's been supportive to me,…I'm going to be there and help him move on from you. I'm going to show him how to move on, and that there is another woman that will be right for him."

Amanda's words hit Betty kind of hard. Betty knew that Amanda was very serious about Gio, and while Betty didn't completely understand what was going on with Amanda and Gio, she thought that Amanda did mean what she said about helping Gio move on and showing him that she could be the right woman for him. Betty was bothered by these thoughts and decided that she wanted to get away from Amanda and needed to go some place and think about things. Betty grabbed the papers off of Amanda's desk and left her work area, without so much as a word. Amanda watched Betty walk away from her desk, wondering why Betty was acting so strangely.

Betty went down to the closet to talk to Christina for a few minutes about what had just happened, and about Amanda and Gio's relationship and Betty's feelings for him. She was hoping that Christina could help her sort at least some of her feelings out.

Christina was sitting down looking over some dresses when Betty entered the room.

"Hi Christina," Betty greeted her.

Christina smiled at Betty. "Hi Betty, how are you doing love?"

"Fine." Betty grabbed a seat and sat down beside Christina. "So I don't have a lot of time to talk to you but I needed to talk you about something."

Christina put down one of the dresses in her hands and looked at Betty. "What is it Betty?" She asked.

"It's Gio… and Amanda." Betty told her.

"Okay, what about them?" Christina asked.

"Well do you remember when I told you that Gio told me that he loved me right?"

Christina nodded smiling. "Ay yes, I remember when you told me that. You say it threw you completely off guard."

Betty scooted her chair closer to Christina. "It did and something else happened that threw me off guard…" Betty then proceeded to tell Christina about her talking with Hilda, and realizing that she did have feelings for Gio. She also told Christina about going over to his apartment to talk to him, but finding Amanda there and then about the conversation that she just had with Amanda.

"Wow, it seems like you got a lot going on Betty. With this situation with Gio and of course everything that is going on with Henry." Christina commented. "What are you going to do?"

Betty sighed. "I don't know Christina, that is why I came to you for advice. What do you think I should do."

"Well..," Christina paused thinking. "You have to follow your heart _and_ your mind. You have to do what you think is right. You have to sort things out and find the best resolution to things." Christina told her.

"But how do I do that?" Betty asked.

"You definitely have to resolve things with Henry. That is a must. Whether you end up marrying him or not you have to resolve things with him. If you choose to marry him, then make sure that is definitely what you want to do and marry him and be happy. If you choose not to marry him, then end the relationship with grace and respect. He is a great love of yours, and he deserves to be treated respectfully if you decide to end things." Christina advised Betty.

Betty nodded. "I will definitely resolve things in a respectful manner no matter what I do regarding Henry. Even if I decide not to marry him. He has been very good to me throughout our relationship, and if we end it, I will treat him with as much respect as I can. He deserves that from me." Betty stated.

Christina nodded. "Good…Now about Gio… what are you going to do about these feelings for him?"

Betty shrugged. "I don't know Christina. If I marry Henry then any feelings that I have for Gio become moot, but if I don't and I decided to stay here in New York… I don't know Christina, plus he is with Amanda, and she seems to really care about him."

"Maybe you should still tell him how you feel."

"That's what Hilda suggested, but I think that I'm not going to tell him anything. Not while I am still with Henry. If I break up with Henry, then I might tell him about my feelings, but maybe I won't because of Amanda…"

"Betty he's in love with you, I think that if you tell him about your feelings for him, he won't be too concerned about Amanda."

"Yeah… but Amanda will still be concerned about him.. . And things could get really complicated even if I did decide to break up with Henry and not move to Tucson."

Betty paused thinking for a moment. "I still need to really think about things." Betty looked down at her watch and realized that she needed to get back to working. "Thank you Christina, for the talk but I have to get back to working now. I will talk to you later." Betty said and she got up and rushed off.

"Bye Betty." Christina called after her.

Betty spent the next few hours running around and working at Mode as usual. At 1:30, she went into Daniel's office to see what he wanted for lunch.

"Hey Betty could you run down to Gio's deli and get me a couple of Reuben sandwiches?"

Betty really didn't want to go to Gio's deli. She hadn't seen him since he told her that he loved her and they kissed. She didn't really want to face him right now, especially since she found out about him and Amanda. Betty thought about trying to persuade Daniel to get something from somewhere else for lunch, but she knew how much he loved Gio's sandwiches. Betty decided to go get the sandwiches for him even though she didn't want to. Daniel gave Betty some money for the sandwiches and she headed off to Gio's deli.


	44. Chapter 44

-1**Chapter 44**

It was Monday afternoon and Gio's deli was empty. It was close to 2:00 and he had already had a big rush of customers come in for the lunch hours. From 11:00 to 1:00 he had a lot of customers come in and order sandwiches. Most of them were to go orders. Now it was close to 2:00, things had slowed down a lot and no one was in his deli. Gio knew that things would get pretty busy again in a couple of hours, when people were getting off work and coming in to buy dinner. Gio decided to straighten up his deli some. As he was straightening things up, he heard someone come in. He looked up and saw that it was Betty.

"Hi." Gio greeted her smiling. He was surprised to see her, but he was also happy to see her.

"Hi." Betty said giving him a small smile. "I just wanted to order two Reuben sandwiches. They are for Daniel." She clarified.

Gio smiled knowingly. "Daniel does love those Reubens, doesn't he?"

Betty nodded.

"Did you want anything?" Gio asked.

"Uh, no thank you." Betty answered.

"Are you sure, I could make you a Chicken Salad Sandwich."

"Well…" Betty began. She hadn't eaten lunch yet and she was hungry. "Okay, I'll have one of those."

Gio nodded and started to make the sandwiches. "So.." he began. "How is everything at work, with your family, with Henry?" He frowned after he said Henry's name. He hadn't planned to ask about Henry but it sort of came out.

"Works fine, my family's fine, Henry's fine, his baby's fine, him and Charlie are thinking about naming her Daphne." Betty blurted out quickly.

Gio looked up at her. "Daphne? Well, that's a nice name, pretty but not incredibly common."

Betty nodded. "Yeah I agree. I think it's nice as well. When Henry told me this morning that they were thinking about naming her that, I thought that it was nice. And of course Henry asked me what I thought about it. I was the first person that he told about the baby's possible name, and well, now you're the first person I'm telling about it…" Betty babbled nervously. _Why am I babbling like this? _Betty wondered to herself. She realized that she was feeling a little nervous around Gio, because she had found out that he loved her, and because they had kissed. Betty figured that she needed to relax some and stop the babbling.

A big smile came across Gio's face. "I'm the first person that you told about this?" He asked.

"Yeah, why are you smiling like that?" Betty asked curiously.

Gio looked at her and his eyes lit up. "It's just that you tell me everything."

Betty was surprised by his statement. "No, I don't."

Gio nodded. "Yeah you do."

Betty shook her head. "No, I don't. I don't tell you everything." Betty denied.

"Yes, You do." Gio paused thinking for a moment. "I'm the first person that you told about some of your writing assignments, I'm the first person that you told about Henry proposing to you, and now I'm the first person that you told about the name that Henry might name his _child_.." Gio laughed and continued to make the sandwiches.

Betty looked at him and frowned. "Why is that funny?" She asked. "Is there something funny about me telling you the name that Henry might name his daughter? How is that funny?"

Gio looked at her and the conversation he had with Amanda went through his mind. He thought about how Amanda had asked him, about why he was the first person that Betty had told about Henry's proposal and how she thought it was because Betty trusted him. He also thought about Amanda talking about his and Betty's relationship and how she said that Betty might have feelings for him. Gio wrapped up the two Reuben's and put them in a bag. He then started to make Betty's sandwich.

"Well…" Betty prompted. "You didn't answer why me telling you about a possible name for Henry's baby is funny?"

"Well…like I mentioned you tell me _everything_. And I guess I shouldn't be surprised." Gio stated, grinning.

"What does that mean?" Betty asked.

" It means that, it's obvious you trust me. Enough to tell me anything. Like about Henry's proposal and about what he is going to name his kid. You tell me important things and random things…"

"So what if I do?" Betty asked defensively not sure where Gio was headed with this.

"There's nothing wrong with it. I guess it's just a part of our _relationship._" Betty felt her face grow warm when he said that.

Gio finished wrapping up Betty's sandwich and he put it in the bag with the rest of the sandwiches. Gio looked at Betty. "You trust me, I trust you, I lo-…" Gio voice trailed off, not finishing the sentence. His eyes locked with Betty's. They stared at each other for a few moments, and then Betty looked down, her eyes avoiding his intense gaze for a moment.

"I'm sorry." Gio quickly apologized. _Why did I almost tell her I love her again? _He wondered to himself.

"It's okay." Betty stated not realizing why he was apologizing. She didn't catch what he almost said to her.. "Like you said we do have some type of relationship. And maybe I do tell you a lot of things, but I don't know about _everything_… and well you don't tell me everything, like you do Amanda." She stated.

A confused look came across Gio's face.

Betty looked at him. "You tell Amanda everything. That's what she told me this morning. She told me that you told her about Henry's proposal, as well as other things… I had no idea that you and her were so _close_." Betty watched Gio to see what he would say about his and Amanda's relationship.

Gio smiled. "I really like Amanda. She is something else. I don't know too many people like her. And typically I wouldn't want to spend that much time with someone that has her personality. But she is deeper than I thought that she was and she is… she's fine with me. I like her a lot."

Betty was quiet as Gio was talking about Amanda. She felt like he had confirmed what she had been suspecting. Betty felt feelings of sadness and hurt. She tried to brush them off.

"Well, that's great, Gio, I'm glad that you like her so much and things are going well with you two.." Betty stated wearily.

Gio looked at Betty. "Yeah,… Betty is everything okay?" He asked.

Betty nodded. "Everything's fine. I have Henry, his baby is going to probably be named Daphne, and you have Amanda. So yeah everything is fine."

Gio was still confused. "Yeah Amanda's great…"

"Great…I'm glad that she makes you at least kind of happy." Betty reached into her purse to get the money to pay Gio for the sandwiches. Gio rang her up and gave her back the change. He knew that something didn't seem right, but he wasn't quite sure, what that was. Betty seemed upset about something and he didn't know what that was. Betty grabbed the sandwich bag and turned to go. But then she stopped and looked back at Gio. "You know since we are friends you could have told me about Amanda." She said abruptly.

"Well, it just happened." Gio stated. "It was very unexpected. But well it happened, and I asked her if she wanted to live with me. I thought it would be best for her. There was no one else there for her and I thought that her living with me would be the best thing."

Betty looked at him surprised at his attitude about the situation. "You thought it would be best for her if she lived with you? Gio…you decided to take that step with her… but you told me you were in love with me?"

"Huh?" Gio asked perplexed. "What does that have to do with anything? They are two different things. What does one have to do with the other? Amanda needed to live with me, I don't see how that has to do with me being in love with you? Unless… I know you don't like Amanda… but Betty it was the right thing to do, at least that's what I thought. I don't regret asking her to move in with me."

Betty looked at Gio in disbelief. She couldn't believe the way that he viewed things.

"I don't see how it's right. I don't. You're in love with me, but you're living with Amanda, and doing all these things with her, building a relationship with her. But you're in love with me? That's not fair to Amanda."

Gio still had no idea what Betty was talking about. He took off his apron, went around the countertop and walked over to her standing a few feet away from her.

"Amanda doesn't have a problem with it Betty. She knows it's for the best. She also knows how I feel about you."

"Because you told her. You told her everything. And she doesn't seem to have a problem with it, because I guess she's weird like that. And surprisingly desperate."

Gio frowned at Betty's comments. "That's pretty harsh Betty. She's going through a rough time right now, I think it's okay for her to be desperate."

Betty shook her head. "I don't think it is. She should treat herself better than that, knowing how you feel about me. I mean she has no problem with what is going on , because she gets to sleep in a cozy bedroom. She has no problem, because you make her delicious breakfasts, she has no problem because she can prance around in your apartment in her nightshirt and answer the door when I come to see you to tell you…" Betty stopped herself, realizing that she had almost said too much.

Gio looked at her confused. "You came to my apartment?" He questioned her. "When, Why?"

"It doesn't matter." Betty stated quickly.

Gio stepped closer to her. "I think it does." He stated quietly, looking deep into her eyes.

"I…" Betty wasn't quite sure what to say. "I wanted to talk to you about what happened between us. You told me that you loved me, we kissed… I went home and I thought about what you said and I thought about everything. I couldn't get the stuff that you said about me out of my mind, I couldn't get our kiss out of my mind. I…" Betty hesitated not sure if she wanted to continue or not.

"You what?" Gio asked.

"I thought about things, and I came to realize that I well…that I have feelings for you." Betty started talking really quickly. " At this point I don't know exactly how strong they are, and of course I still love Henry. But I was going to tell you about them and…" Her voice trailed off. She wasn't quite sure what else to say. She looked at Gio. Gio stared at her stunned by her confession. She _did_ have feelings for him. Gio was thrilled and stunned at the same time. He had wanted this to be true, but he was still surprised that she had feelings for him.

Betty realized what she had said to Gio and thought that she had made a mistake. "Gio… I shouldn't have told you about this. There was no point about me telling you about any feelings that I have for you… I mean I'm still with Henry…" Gio stepped closer to Betty, as she was talking.

"And well you and Amanda that's…" Before she could finish her sentence Gio had wrapped his arms around her and was kissing her. Once again Betty was startled and dropped the bag of sandwiches she had in her hand onto the floor.

She was stunned as Gio kissed her lips for quite a while. Betty gave into the kiss and kissed him back, putting her hands on his shoulders. After they kissed for a while, Gio stopped for a short moment. He looked into her eyes meaningfully and then began kissing her again. He kissed both her cheeks, her nose and then his mouth found her lips again. Betty couldn't help but gasp, because of how passionate and intense his kiss was. They continued to kiss for a little while longer and then Betty slightly pulled away from him. She rested her forehead against his and tried to process what had happened.

Both of Gio's hands were on her arms. "Betty…" he began. Betty looked up at him and attempted to move farther away from him. Gio realized what she was trying to do and he let her go.

"Betty I…"

"Gio…I… _oh_.." Betty said looking at him, a flustered look on her face. "That was just… you shouldn't have… _we_ shouldn't have done that."

"But Betty you…"

"Gio,…no.…" Betty reached down and picked up the bag of sandwiches. She looked at Gio. "I'm sorry but that shouldn't have happened." She then turned and quickly left the deli and walked away from it as fast as she could. She couldn't believe what had just happened.

Betty had not intended to tell Gio about her feelings for him, and she certainly hadn't intended to kiss him again. Plus she was still with Henry and he was with Amanda. Things were now even more complicated than they were before. _What am I going to do? _She wondered to herself as she walked away from his deli. Betty knew that she had to process what had happened and that she had a lot to think about.

As Gio watched Betty walk away from his deli, there were several emotions going through him. Happiness, because Betty had admitted to having feelings for him, and he was very happy that they had kissed again. But he was also worried, and confused. Betty had ran away from him, and Gio felt badly about that. He wasn't sure what to do.

He now knew she had feelings for him, but she still loved and was with Henry. He wasn't sure if there was anything that he could do. But he knew that he loved her and he really wanted to be with her. Gio knew that he had a lot to think about. As he went back to straightening up his deli and preparing for the customers that he would have later on in the day, he kept thinking about Betty, their kiss, and his love for her.


	45. Chapter 45

-1Thanks for the reviews.

**Chapter 45**

"So is she coming at 6:45?" Amanda asked as Gio sat down on the couch beside her in his apartment.

"Yes, that is when Sage and her brother said they would be coming." Gio answered. "The party starts at 7:30." Sage had invited Gio and Amanda to a party at a very fancy hotel The Caldion. A lot of fashion designers and their customers were going to be there. There was going to be lots of free food and drinks at the party and Gio had thought that it would be a good idea for him and Amanda to go especially since she was still very upset about her apartment burning down. He figured that she would feel better if she got to go to the party and mingle with some of the fashion designers.

Amanda nodded at Gio's confirmation. "Good. I need to get out. Work has been a bit of a drag lately…" She paused and sighed. "And of course I'm still bummed about my apartment burning down. Champagne, fancy hors d'oeuvres and hanging out with some of the best fashion designers around will help me feel better."

Gio smiled at her. "I figured that it would. I knew that you would like hanging out with Sage and her brother is pretty nice too."

"What does her brother do?" Amanda asked curiously. "Is he in the fashion design business as well?"

"No, he's actually a College professor at NYU, he teaches English." Gio informed her.

Amanda frowned. "Oh…how _boring. _He's old and ugly isn't he? He's like 60 right? When I think of college professors I think of old, unattractive men, that wear glasses. Does he walk with a cane too?"

Gio tried not to laugh at Amanda's assumption. She was constantly stereotyping people, Gio could hardly believe some of the things that came out of her mouth, but then again, maybe he could because she was _Amanda_.

"No, he's not old. He's older than Sage is, but he's not an old guy. I would say he's probably late 20's or early 30. He's a pretty nice guy."

Amanda smirked. "A pretty _nice_ guy? Wow he must be _really _ugly then."

Gio shook his head. "Amanda…"

"You know why don't you date Sage, instead of pine over Betty?" Amanda interjected quickly before Gio could finish his sentence. "Look I know that you're in love with her. I get that. But Sage is well _pretty_… she's going places, she's already one of the hottest young fashion designers around. From what you've told me about her she seems nice. And if you dated her you could me get discounts on her clothes."

Amanda paused. "By the way I saw Betty wearing one of the skirts that you gave her for her birthday. I have to say, the skirt was actually nice. I was shocked that Betty would wear something like that. You know something that doesn't look like it came out of a clown's closet."

Gio's face lit up. "Betty wore one of the skirts that I gave her?"

Amanda nodded. "Yeah she did. I asked her about it and she smiled and said it came from you. You have good taste in women's clothing."

"Well, actually Sage helped me pick them out." Gio admitted. He paused for a moment in thought. "I'm glad that Betty liked them. I'm glad that she…" His voice trailed off.

"You're glad that she what?" Amanda asked curiously.

"I'm glad that she… We kissed again yesterday." Gio blurted out.

"What?!" Amanda asked surprised. "You did, so soon? But she's still with Henry right?"

Gio nodded. "She is. But she came to my deli yesterday to get some sandwiches, and well…" Gio told Amanda exactly what had happened, about their conversation and how she had admitted to having feelings for him and them kissing again. He told her how Betty had run away after they kissed again.

"Wow, good for you then." Amanda stated. "I told you that she probably had feelings for you." She stated knowingly.

"Yeah, I'm glad that she does.. But I'm no where near where I want to be with her…"

"Because she's still with Henry, and she still loves him." Amanda finished. "But she admitted that she has feelings for you and that's a good thing. Hey you're closer to getting what you want than I am. I still haven't found my dream man." She sighed.

"Well. I don't believe in that psychic crap, but I'm sure you'll find someone eventually." Gio assured her.

"Right, when I'm old and close to death." Amanda stated miserably.

"I don't think that it will be that long. Hey… that reminds me I got in contact with Kyle."

"You did?" Amanda asked. "Well what did he say? Did he say why he stood me up?"

"Well, he said something very important came up. Something huge. And that he would swing by the apartment later on this week, to tell us about it. But he said he had some really important things to do first. And he said that he was really sorry for not being able to go out with you. But that he wanted to make it up to you." Gio informed Amanda.

"Hmm… sounds suspicious. I guess I'll see what he has to say. That doesn't mean that I'll be willing to go out with him again, but I'll least hear his explanation."

Gio smiled. "Good. Kyle's a good man Amanda. I've known him for a while. I don't know if he's your dream guy or whatever but he is a good man. You should give him a chance to explain himself."

Amanda nodded. Her and Gio talked for a while longer, and then they both got ready for the party. Gio got dressed in a nice shirt and dress slacks, and Amanda put on a pretty blue dress that she had gotten from the closet. After they both got dressed, they sat back down on the couch, and waited for Sage and Paul to arrive. Around 6:30 they heard someone knocking on the door.

"It must be them." Gio got up and answered the door.

"Aw, man Gio. I have the greatest news!" Kyle stepped inside Gio's apartment.

"Kyle, hey man…I didn't expect you to come over tonight…" Gio began.

"My life has changed man, it's changed for the better. You won't believe what happened to me…" Kyle declared excitedly.

"Whatever it is, I hope it was good enough to stand me up for." Amanda responded from the couch.

Kyle looked over at her and gave her a smile. "Amanda, hi. I'm sorry about our date, but something came up, something both sad and something well wonderful." He stated.

"What happened?" Gio asked curiously.

"Well, do you remember the old lady that I told you about Mrs. Barker? She used to come to my restaurant a lot. She was a really good customer. She used to come during the late hours at the restaurant, and sometimes I used to spend some time talking with her after I had finished my duties in the kitchen. Sometimes she would stay past closing hours, and the owner would let her stay because everyone liked her. She was a wonderful lady and a good tipper. She was kind of like a grandmother figure to me. She was always giving me advice."

Gio nodded. "I remember her. How is she doing?" He asked.

"Well, she's… dead." Kyle informed him.

"Oh…" A thoughtful expression came across Gio's face. "Well, I'm sorry to hear that man. I know how much you liked her."

"Yeah I cared about her a lot." Kyle admitted, a thoughtful expression coming across his face. He continued talking.

"Well, she died last week." Kyle turned to look at Amanda. "A few days before our date." Kyle informed her. "And well the day of our date, I got a phone call, informing me that she had passed away. It was from her lawyer."

A puzzled look came across Gio's face. "Why would her lawyer call you?" He inquired.

Kyle took a deep breath , an excited look coming across his face. "Because of her will. He wanted to inform me about her will. She left me something in her will…"

"What did she leave you?" Gio inquired curiously.

"12 million dollars!" A smile burst across Kyle's face.

A surprised look came across Gio's face and Amanda's mouth dropped open.

"12 million dollars! You're serious?" Gio asked stunned.

"I'm serious." Kyle confirmed. "Mrs. Barker was a very wealthy woman. Her husband had owned his own company and made a whole lot of money for them. He left her a load of money after he passed away. And well she didn't have any kids, or grandchildren, or siblings… She left me 12 million dollars Gio." Kyle's smile got even wider.

"I mean she left me a huge amount of money. She gave left some of her money to charity and some of it to me." Kyle took a breath. "She wrote in her will that she cared a lot about me, that I was like a son that she never had and wanted… and well. I…I'm rich Gio. _Rich."_

"Filthy Rich." Amanda jumped off the couch and rushed over to Kyle throwing her arms around him. "_Yesssss_!" She exclaimed happily. _Maybe I have found my dream man after all. _She thought to herself.

Kyle hugged Amanda close to him, taking in the scent of her perfume. She smelled good. Everything was good. He thought to himself happily.

Gio shook his head in disbelief. "Wow man… I don't know what to say. I mean congratulations." Gio smiled, happy for his friend.

Kyle pulled back slightly from Amanda and smiled at her and then Gio. "Have you guys eaten yet? Let me take you out to dinner. Anywhere you want to go."

"Hey, that's nice… but actually we had…" Gio's voice stopped talking when he heard another knock on his door. "Excuse me for a second." He went to the door and opened it. Sage and Paul were standing outside. He smiled at them.

"Hey guys come in." He greeted them warmly. They stepped inside. Amanda glanced up quickly at Sage. She looked very pretty in a very stylish brown dress. Her and Amanda smiled at each other. Amanda looked at the man that was with her and her pulse raced. He was a tall very good looking, muscular man with brown hair and green eyes that seemed to see right through her.

Amanda noticed how beautiful his eyes were, they were kind, and thoughtful yet smoldering at the same time. As the man's eyes washed over Amanda, he smiled at her a warm, kind, yet sexy smile. Amanda's pulse speeded up more. This man was very _hot. _But he wasn't just hot. He was _more_. A lot more. He was very masculine, and Amanda sensed that he could be a man of authority when he needed to be, but that he was also gentle and kind. She didn't know how she knew that but she _knew_ it.

Amanda shifted her attention away from the man and his gaze for a second and back up at Kyle who she was still wrapped around. She smiled at him, and let him go, and stood a little bit away from him. She felt a little dizzy, from the knowledge that Kyle was now very rich but also because of the other man, and his presence.

"Hey Amanda, and Kyle." Gio's voice sounded in her ears.

"This is Paul Austin, Sage's brother." He introduced them.

"Hi nice to meet you." Kyle went over and shook Paul's hand.

"Hi, nice to meet you too." Paul stated giving Kyle a smile.

Amanda glanced at Paul and slowly went over to where he was standing. She stuck out her hand to shake his. "Hi… I'm.. Amanda Tanning." She managed to choke out.

"Nice to meet you Amanda." Paul grabbed her hand, and Amanda noticed how warm and firm his hand was. She held onto his hand for a little while longer, looking into his eyes. They were almost hypnotic. Amanda then let go of Paul's hand and stepped back standing next to Kyle.

"So,…" Sage began. "Are you guys ready to go?"

"Ready to go where?" Kyle asked curiously.

"There's a party tonight that Sage invited us to. That is where we were headed to before you came over, and why we can't go out to dinner with you."

"Oh." Kyle nodded understanding. "Well, I guess I'll see you later… and Amanda I'll call you for another date?"

Amanda nodded smiling at Kyle. He started to walk away.

"Hey why don't you come to the party with us?" Sage asked Kyle. "The more the merrier. It's going to be fun. Free Champagne and food. And since you're a Chef you can critique the food."

"Well.. okay." Kyle agreed. "If no one thinks that I'm imposing?" He asked. Everyone shook their head no and Kyle smiled. He went back over to Amanda and lightly draped his arm around her shoulder. "This should be fun."

Everyone smiled. "Let's get out of here." Gio said. Everyone began to make their way out of Gio's apartment. Amanda glanced up at Kyle who still had his arm around her and smiled at him. She then looked away from him at Gio and Sage who were walking together, and at Paul who she found was looking at her.

Their eyes met, and Paul smiled at her. Amanda quickly returned his smile, and felt her pulse racing again.

She turned her eyes away from him and focused straight ahead. Paul reluctantly pulled his eyes away from her and everyone made their way to the party.


	46. Chapter 46

-1**Chapter 46**

"Well, hide behind me some more why don't cha?" Christina asked sarcastically. "Geesh Betty, what's got you playing hide and seek using my back as your refuge?" She asked curiously.

"It's Gio, I see him." Betty stated quietly.

"What? Gio's at this party?" Christina inquired.

"Yes, I see him over there with Sage Austin, his friend Kyle and Amanda."

Christina looked over at the group that Gio was in. "Aye. I see him, Sage and Amanda. And is Kyle that smoking hot brown haired man with them? I could smoke salmon off of that one's body. Oh Sweet mother, he is a hot one…"

"No", Betty confirmed still crouching behind Christina. "That's not him. He's the other tall man, the cute affable looking blonde man."

"Aw, yes the blonde man is cute and affable looking. But I couldn't smoke a salmon filet off of him." Christina walked forward a little. "Aw…come on Betty. Come from behind me, I don't want people to think that I'm talking to myself."

Betty peeked at around Christina looking at Gio and his friends. "Okay… but let's back it up and go to a restroom. I need to compose myself before I possibly face Gio."

Christina rolled her eyes. "You want me to _back it up_? I mean really Betty… All of this because you told the guy you had feelings for him and made out with him _again_."

"We didn't make out." Betty stated. "We kissed again and yes it was long, but I wouldn't say it was making out."

"Okay you too played kissy face for a long, long, time. _Again_." Christina, began to walk slowly backwards. "Okay I'm _backing_ it up."

"Thank you Christina." Christina and Betty backed up for a little more until they reached the entrance of the room. Christina, was glad that the room was crowded, she hoped people were too busy to notice how weird she was probably looking. Betty then let go of Christina and turned and headed left towards the ladies room. Christina followed her. Once they reached the ladies room, Betty went over to one of the sinks, looked in the mirror and sighed.

She turned to look at Christina. "I don't know what to do Christina. He knows that I have feelings for him now. I've complicated things and that wasn't my intention. I didn't intend to tell him that I have feelings for him. I'm still not sure about what I am going to do about Henry. I'm confused., Christina so confused. I need time to think…"

"Time's running out Betty." Christina warned her gently.

"I know… I know…" Betty sighed. "Maybe I need to treat this like one of our deadlines at Mode that I need to meet. I only have X amount of weeks to make a decision between Henry and Gio. And if I don't then disaster strikes."

Christina nodded. "Sounds like a plan."

Betty began to pace back and forth on the restroom floor. "I have to make a decision. To marry Henry or to not marry him and maybe eventually after I've gotten over him, start something up with Gio. They both love me. They are both good men. I have feelings for both of them. I need to make a decision. Okay, I will think about this some more and come to a decision."

Christina nodded. "Okay."

Betty smiled nervously. "Okay, now let's go back out there to this party. We are supposed to be here to represent the interests of Mode. I have designers that I need to talk to and who Daniel would like to feature in some of our upcoming issues. I have work to do. If I see Gio, I will greet him, maybe talk to him for a while, but then I will get back to work. Because I'm here to do my job."

Betty took a deep breath. "Let's go." Her and Christina exited the restroom and headed back towards the party. Betty then began to go around and talk to some of the fashion designers at the party. Christina went with her when she was talking to some of the designers and also mingled with some of the guests at the party.

At another part of the room, Gio, Kyle, Amanda and Sage were talking to each other and hanging out together. Sage excused herself to go talk to some of the other fashion designers, and Gio and Kyle recognized one of the caterers at the party and went to go talk to him for a little while. Amanda and Paul were left together. Amanda looked at Paul and smiled at him, shyly. She hadn't really talked a whole lot to him that night. She had mostly talked to Kyle and Gio, and Sage some. But not Paul. She felt tongue tied around him and wasn't quite sure what to say to him. Amanda had never been tongue tied around a man before. If she saw a man that she liked she usually approached him and talked to him. Unless he was married. But Paul was different. There was just something about him…

"So Amanda,… do you like working at Mode?" She heard his voice ask her. She turned her attention back to him. "I do." She answered shortly. _Wow, is my mouth constipated or what? Talk to the man. _She thought to herself. "I mean I like it just fine. It's cool to witness everyday how a fashion magazine works. How the industry works. I get to see a lot of different fashions, I have access to different events, including some where celebrities are at. You won't believe some of the things I have caught celebrities doing, and some of the stuff that I have heard about them." She leaned closer to him, getting a whiff of his cologne.

Paul smiled. "I'll bet. My sister has had her shares of bad and weird experiences with celebrities. Of course she's an up and coming designer and hasn't seen as much as other people have seen. But some of the stories she has told me, were kind of out there. I have a lot of respect for her and what she does, and I'm proud of her that she is living her dream. She's worked hard to get to where she's at now, and I hope that she continues to succeed."

"Aw…" Amanda gushed and then stopped. She was already gushing around this man. Amanda didn't gush a whole lot. Yet she found herself gushing around Paul. He made her feel _soft. _Amanda wasn't quite sure what to make of that.

"So…um you're a professor. I have to say that you don't look like what I think a lot of professors would look like. You're so Ho…I mean…you're not _old_." She stammered out.

A slightly perplex look came across Paul's face. "I… well um thanks. But some of the best professors are _old_." He joked.

"Yeah… but.. they aren't…." Amanda found herself floundering her words again. "How does it feel to teach grown brats instead of little brats like grade school teachers do?" She blurted out.

_Ah… now this sounds more like me._ She thought.

This time Paul looked even more complex. "I umm… well, I don't consider my students brats, I mean some of them aren't as driven as others, but I care about them. I value them, and I want to help them get a good education. I want them to come away from my class, with a greater knowledge of the subject of English and what it entails. I want them to be able to comprehend the subject better, I want them to really have learned something from me. My job is to teach them and I want to do that well."

Amanda nodded. "Right. You're not just about the paycheck. Which since you are professor instead of say a movie star, CEO of a major company, professional athelete or even model, is not very big. I'm sure you make more than regular teachers do, but they don't get paid much now do they?" She asked bluntly.

A frown came across Paul's face. "Well, I do alright. I know I'm not a A list celebrity, like you have may have seen before, or a hot shot business man, or pro athlete or a model." Paul shook his head humbly, "but… I love what I do." His green eyes focused on Amanda and she saw a solemn and humbled look in them. Those eyes… she could get lost in them. Amanda and Paul looked at each other for a few seconds longer in silence. Then Gio and Kyle came back over to them. Paul turned his attention from Amanda and looked at the two men. Amanda then turned as well.

"We're back." Kyle said going over to Amanda. "Miss me?" He asked, putting his arm back around her shoulder.

"Maybe." Amanda stated coyly.

"Well, you won't get a chance to miss me when we go on our upcoming date. I promise you that." Kyle winked at her grinning. "I am going to give you the best date you ever had. We'll start out by going to a really nice restaurant, one of the expensive really nice ones in the city… and then…"

"I love expensive." Amanda smirked.

"I figured." Kyle looked down at her smiling.

Paul watched them together quietly, with a frown on his face. Gio noticed that Paul was frowing, and that it seemed like something was bothering him. Kyle and Amanda talked more about their expensive date and then Paul excused himself to go look for his sister. Gio wondered what was bothering him. Kyle continued to talk to Amanda some more and then they stopped. And he looked up and his eyes scanned around the room. He saw Betty talking to a blond woman.

"Hey Gio, isn't that Betty?" He asked turning to look at Gio. He indicated where she was at.

"What?" Gio asked and saw where Kyle was looking at. It was indeed Betty. She was talking excitedly to Christina about something. Gio felt his heart race at the site of her. He watched her for a few moments, and then he saw her turn her head in his direction. Their eyes met and he smiled at her. She smiled at him tentatively. Gio decided that he was going to go over and talk to her and he headed in her direction.


	47. Chapter 47

Thanks for the reviews **Beatrice**(I always enjoy your comments :),) **M1ssP1ggy**, **Maria7992** and **pmaree79**. I appreciate them.

**Chapter 47**

"Hey, Betty." Gio smiled at her as he greeted her at the party. Betty looked at him and smiled kind of nervously. "Hi Gio."

Gio turned to Christina and smiled. "Hi Christina."

"Hi, Gio." Christina smiled at him and then her eyes scanned the room. "Oh, Goodie I see one of my favorite designers, Marcus Papperson, and I want to get a chance to talk to him. Bye guys." Christina left to talk to Marcus and Betty and Gio were left alone. There was silence between them for a few moments.

"So…" Gio began trying to break the ice. "You're here tonight for this party. Are you here on assignment for Mode are you into crashing fashion design parties?" Gio joked.

Betty smiled. "I'm here on assignment for Mode. I'm trying to woo some of these designers to agree to showcase some of their clothes in some of our upcoming issues."

Gio grinned and looked at Betty, with a mischievous look in his eyes. "Ah, the art of _wooing_. I know a thing or two about that subject."

"I'll bet you do." Betty looked at Gio and then her eyes scanned around the room and rested on Amanda who was laughing with Kyle and some other people.

Gio saw who she was looking at, and decided that he needed to clear something up. "Hey Betty." He gently touched her arm. She turned to look at him.

"About the other day…" He began.

Betty felt her face grow warm. "Gio…"

"What you think is going on between Amanda and me is not going on." Gio informed her. "I am just helping her while she is going through a rough time right now. There is nothing romantic going on between us."

A puzzled look came across Betty's face for a moment and then she understood, what Gio was talking about. "Right. I heard about her apartment burning down. That's very unfortunate. I'm sorry that I jumped to conclusions like that and I'm sorry that I said the things that I did about her. I was wrong for that."

Gio smiled at Betty. "You know Amanda's a decent girl. I have gotten to know her and she's a decent person. She was in trouble and I offered to help her. That's all."

Betty nodded. "She's not my favorite person, but I believe that everyone has their good qualities and I'm glad that you have seen those qualities in Amanda."

Gio nodded and paused before he continued. "Yeah, I don't think that Amanda is that hard to understand. She wants some of the same things that most other people want."

Betty looked at Gio curiously. "Like what?" She asked.

Gio paused for a moment, a thoughtful expression coming across his face. "Well, a place that she can call home for one thing." Betty nodded in understanding. Gio continued talking. "A decent job, that she's happy at, and…" His voice trailed off for a moment. "Love." His eyes locked with Betty when he said that.

Betty felt her face grow warm again. She tentatively pushed her glasses up on her face. "Yeah, at work Amanda has been talking about finding her dream man, and looking for true love. She talks about it a lot."

Gio nodded and his eyes rested on Amanda and Kyle again who were talking happily together. A smile came across his face as he watched them together. "Yeah, she's been talking about finding her soul mate a lot. She said some psychic told her that she was going to find her dream man and that I was going to lead her to him."

A surprised look came across Betty's face. "Really?" She questioned.

Gio nodded. "Really. Some psychic named Linda told her that."

"Oh, Linda." A knowing look came across Betty's face. "That's the same psychic that Amanda went to when she was looking for her father. She had told Amanda that she would find her "B" and that her "B" would lead her to a kiss and then she would find her father."

A confused look came across Gio's face, as he was listening to Betty.

Betty continued. "Well, it turns out I was her "B" and I somehow ended up leading her to her father Gene Simmons the lead singer of Kiss. The whole thing was bizarre, but according to Amanda this was exactly what the psychic predicted."

Gio nodded. "After I performed the Heimlich maneuver on Amanda outside of my sandwich shop she told me that Linda said that I was her G and that I would save her life multiple times."

Betty smiled. "Maybe Linda really is psychic after all."

"Maybe." Gio stated reluctantly. He looked at Betty and took a breath before he said what he was about to say next. "Betty about the other day, when we kissed…"

"Gio, I…"

"I'm sorry." Gio finished.

"You are?" Betty asked surprised.

"I am. I… shouldn't have kissed you again, even though you admitted to having feelings for me. You're still with Henry and I guess that you are still sorting things out about him and me. I shouldn't have kissed you again, when you still have…your feelings to sort out." He looked at her bashfully.

"But when you came into my shop and told me that you had feelings for me…I was so happy… I have loved you for quite a while and for you to admit that you had some romantic feelings for me made me feel good, and… hopeful." He admitted.

Betty nodded, absorbing what he was saying. "Gio… I'm sorry too. I shouldn't have flew out of your shop after you kissed me again. But I was… worried and overwhelmed. I had just told you that I had these feelings for you and well the way you responded…" Her thoughts went back to the kiss again. "I wasn't sure what to do. I mean I do have feelings for you, but I'm still with Henry and he did ask me to marry him…"

"And you need time to think." Gio finished for her. "I understand Betty. I do. And I want you to know that whatever you decide, I'm here. As your friend, if you want, or eventually as something more, if that is what you want. I'm not going to pressure you to make a decision."

Betty smiled touched by Gio's consideration. She reached over and squeezed his hand, noticing how warm and strong it felt. "Thank you Gio. I appreciate that. I appreciate you…"

Just then Betty heard her cell phone ring. She let go of Gio's hand and reached into her purse to retrieve it. She saw that it was Henry. She answered the phone. "Hello, Henry… Whoa… Henry slow down. Really she did? When? Earlier tonight? Okay… You want me to come there? _Now_? Are you sure Henry..? You need me.. Okay I'll be there. Bye."

Betty hung up the phone with an excited look on her face. "That was Henry." She informed Gio. "Charlie had her baby tonight. A girl. Henry's at the hospital and he wants me to go over there quickly. I have to go."

Gio nodded understanding. "Okay… well we'll talk later?" He asked hopefully.

Betty nodded. "Yes." She gave him a smile and quickly headed across the room to get Christina. Gio watched as Betty talked to Christina briefly and then watched them both leave the room. After they left he stood by himself for a while thinking about the conversation that he and Betty had just had.

He thought about how she was honest with him, and how she told him that she appreciated him, and that made him feel good. Gio knew that she was still with Henry, but after the talk that he had with her, where they were both honest about their feelings, he felt more hopeful, that maybe things would end up working in his favor. Gio thought about Betty a little while longer and then walked across the room to rejoin his friends.


	48. Chapter 48

-1**Chapter 48**

"I saw the way you were looking at her." Sage told him teasingly.

"Who?" Paul asked curiously his eyes focused on the road.

"Amanda." Sage stated matter of factly. "You kept staring at her tonight. You like her. Or do you _love_ her?" Sage asked in a sing song voice.

A flustered look came across Paul's face. "I don't… I barely know her. How can I love her when I barely know her?"

"Love at first sight?" Sage suggested. "It happens."

Paul was approaching a stop light and he began to slow the car down. "Amanda is… really pretty." Paul stated truthfully. "She is. She's a very pretty woman. And I'm not blind. But for you to suggest that I love her… that's so…Come on Sage." He said exasperatedly.

Sage glanced at her brother and smirked.

"I mean even though I do think that she is very pretty… she's got a boyfriend. And I don't really think that she's my type. I mean she kind of reminds me of Leslie…"

Sage frowned. "Is her personality _that _bad Paul? I mean I haven't spent that much time with her, outside of what time I spent with her tonight and when I met her briefly at a fashion show a while ago. I admit she does seem like an ummm... _interesting _woman, but she reminds you of Leslie?… well that's not good."

"Some of the things that she said tonight reminded me of Leslie. Like when she was talking about my job and when she asked me what it was like to teach grown brats… that sounded like something Leslie would say."

Sage snorted. "She called your students grown brats? Well, that does sound like something Leslie would say. Maybe she is like Leslie, or maybe she's Leslie lite." Sage joked. She noticed a frown cross his face when she said this. She reached out and gently touched his arm.

"Okay… I get it, Paul. She reminds you of Leslie, which is not a good thing. But maybe she really isn't like Leslie, I mean you only spent a little time with her, maybe she is a much better person than Leslie is. Maybe if you got a chance to spend more time with her…"

Paul shook his head. "It doesn't matter anyway. She has a boyfriend, Kyle. And I probably won't see her again. So it doesn't matter."

"But… love at first sight?" Sage suggested again. "Paul you hardly took your eyes off of her. There had to be a reason for that. Yes she is a very pretty woman, but you have been around some of my friends, who are also very pretty women. And who have shown interest in you, but you didn't look at them, like you looked at Amanda tonight. Maybe you saw more than a pretty face when you looked at her. Maybe you saw something deeper there, but you just don't know what it is yet. Maybe if you did somehow spend more time with her, you'd find out what that was."

"It's probably not going to happen Sage. It really doesn't matter." Paul sighed and kept driving and turned on the street where Sage's apartment was.

Sage looked at her brother for a moment thinking about him and Amanda. "Okay.. If you say so." She said reluctantly. She dropped the subject and Paul drove to her apartment, bid her goodnight and drove off, deep in thought about what Sage had said about him and Amanda.


	49. Chapter 49

-1**Chapter 49**

"Dun, Dun, Dun, Dun… Dun, Dun, Dun, Dun…" Amanda was practicing walking insider of her desk area, with a wedding veil on.

Betty approached her, a confused look on her face, once she saw what Amanda was doing.

"Amanda are you… practicing for a wedding?" Betty asked.

"No, I'm just walking like this because I like my face covered up." Amanda replied sarcastically. "Of course I'm practicing for a wedding… I'm getting married."

A shocked look came across Betty's face. "What!? To who? When?"

Amanda smirked and lifted the veil off of her face. "To Gio's friend Kyle. He is my dream man. Linda said that Gio would lead me to my dream man and I believe that is Kyle. She also said that my dream man could be rich, and well Kyle is now very rich. So he is my dream man."

"But Amanda… you barely know him. How many dates have you two been on?" Betty questioned. "He proposed to you already?"

"We have been on three dates in a row, and we have had a very good time on each one. No, he hasn't proposed yet. But he will. Because he's my dream man. And it shouldn't take him that long to figure that out. And once he does… well... Then I'll become Amanda Sletherson, married woman, and millionaireheiress."

Amanda reached into a bowl of grains on her desk and threw a handful in Betty's face. "Here have some couscous. I'm thinking of having Moroccan food at the wedding and having people throw couscous instead of regular rice."

Betty shook the dried couscous off of her face and hair. "Amanda!" She exclaimed.

"What?" Amanda smirked. "Are you a couscous hater?"

"No, I like Couscous. I just don't like it _thrown in my face_." Betty put her hands on her hips. "And anyway… you should really think about things before you rush off and get married to Kyle. Marriage is a big step and something that shouldn't be taken lightly."

"You mean I should take _forever_ to answer a marriage proposal like you are?" Amanda retorted. "Henry's kid is born already and you still haven't answered his marriage proposal. What are you waiting for Betty? Give the man an answer already. He's not going to wait around forever for you. Plus you have poor Gio on the side, in love with you as well. I'm going to have to grab my curling iron and light a fire underneath your butt to force you to make a decision. Or if that doesn't work I'll find something else that will set your butt on fire."

Betty frowned at Amanda. "I still need time, to make my decision. I need…"

"You have had enough time already to make up your mind, Betty." Amanda interjected. "You know if you don't make up your mind, it's going to get made up for you." Amanda warned her.

"What does that mean?" Betty asked.

"It means make up your mind _already_. Time isn't going to stand still for you. Plus it sounds kind of threatening and I want to scare you a little bit." Amanda admitted.

Betty shook her head. "I… I still have a little time…"

Amanda rolled her eyes. "Yeah, whatever." She wiped some of the loose grains off of her desk. "Betty you need to make a decision. Decide which man and life that you want and choose that man and life. Be more sure of yourself like I am. I want Kyle, Kyle wants me, and soon enough we will probably be married." Amanda stated seriously.

Betty sighed. "It's not that easy Amanda. You don't have two wonderful men in love with you."

"You're right. I don't. But if I did I would be twice as happy as I am now."

Betty rolled her eyes. "It's not as fun as it sounds."

Amanda leaned forward and looked at Betty perplexed. "Are you kidding me? I would love to have two great guys vying for my attention. That would be awesome and of course I'm totally worth it. I would love if another rich man was vying for my attention along beside Kyle. That would be _fun_."

Betty shook her head. "It's not fun. It's… difficult. Having two wonderful men in love with you may seem like it's a great thing, but it just makes things very complicated. Because you have to choose between them, and once you choose one of them will get hurt. Be grateful that you don't have to deal with that."

Amanda shrugged. "I still think that it would be great and fun."

Betty shook her head. "It really isn't fun Amanda." She put the list of numbers that she had in her hand on Amanda's desk. "Daniel needs you to contact these list of photographers and see who is available for our next photo shoot and then get back to me about it."

Amanda nodded and took the list of names and numbers. "I'll see you later." Betty told her and walked away.

Amanda watched Betty for a moment as she walked away, Betty's words about how complicated it was to have two men in love with her running through her mind. Those words rested in Amanda's mind for a while longer and she pushed them to the back of her mind and picked up the phone and began to call the list of photographers.


	50. Chapter 50

-1**Thanks for the reviews Beatrice and rltsweetie22591.**

**Chapter 50**

"She was pretty cute." Betty told Hilda reaching for one of the empanadas on her plate. "She didn't have much hair but she had pretty blue eyes."

"Did you get a chance to hold her?" Hilda asked.

"Well, no but I saw her in the nursery. Henry took me to see her there. Charlie was resting when we went to see Daphne."

"Oh." Hilda nodded. She looked at Betty. "So…have you thought more about what you are going to do about Henry's proposal? Now that Daphne is here, he will probably be going back to Tucson soon and well he probably is going to want an answer soon."

Betty sighed and took a bite of her empanada. After she finished chewing and swallowing the bite, she put the rest of her empanada back on her plate and looked at Hilda.

"I know that Henry and Charlie and Daphne will all be going back to Tucson soon, but I'm still not sure what to do. I'm not sure if I want to marry Henry or not, marriage is such a big step and I don't know if I'm ready for that. Plus I would be giving up my life and future here in New York and I'm not sure if I want to do that either."

"And there's Gio and your feelings for him." Hilda interjected.

Betty nodded. "Yeah, I saw him the other night at the hotel party and we talked. We were both honest with each other about how we felt, and he was very sweet about everything. He told me that he would be here for me as a friend, or maybe as more. And he apologized for kissing me again."

"Really?" Hilda asked.

"Really. He said that he shouldn't have kissed me again, when I came to see him at his deli. But he said he was so excited that I had romantic feelings for him and that is why he kissed me…"

"Gio kissed you?" A voice asked from behind Betty. Both Betty and Hilda's eyes widened when they recognized the voice.

Betty turned around to face the person that had just come into the kitchen. "Henry!" She exclaimed. "What are you doing here?"

"I came by to talk to you. Your dad told me you were here in the kitchen and told me to come in here and see you. And get some empanadas and lemonade. So I came in here ready to do that. But now I'm no longer in the mood for empanadas and lemonade." A confused and hurt look was plastered on Henry's face.

"Gio kissed you?" He asked again. "And you have romantic feelings for him?"

A worried look came across Betty's face. "Henry I can explain…"

Hilda rose from the table. "I just remembered I have to wash something. I'll let you two talk." She gave Betty a concerned look and left the kitchen. Betty and Henry were alone and they stared at each other for a few moments, before Betty spoke again. "Henry, I… about the kiss between me and Gio… it was… I…"

"I heard you tell Hilda he kissed you again. So he kissed you more than once?" Henry probed.

Betty sighed. "Yes." She admitted. "He kissed me twice on two different occasions." Henry frowned, the hurt look still on his face.

"Henry I… I should have told you…"

"You have feelings for him." Henry stated sadly. "Are you in love with him?" He asked point blank.

Betty paused, surprised at the bluntness of Henry's question. "I… I do have feelings for him, but I wouldn't say I am in love with him." Betty replied as honestly as she could.

Henry nodded. "_Wow_." He adjusted his glasses on his face and took a deep breath. He wasn't sure whether to go or stay after learning about this revelation about Betty and her feelings for Gio. He thought for a moment and decided to sit down at the table with her. After he sat down, he looked into her face. "Why didn't you tell me about this before?"

Betty shook her head hopelessly. "I didn't realize that I had feelings for him until after you proposed. I went to see him the night that you proposed to me. I asked him for advice about you. I wanted him to tell me what to do, help me decide whether I should marry you or not. He gave me some good advice and basically told me to follow my heart and then he kissed me and told me that he was in love with me."

"_Shocker_." Henry commented, a note of sarcasm in his voice. "I knew he had feelings for you, I even suspected he might be in love with you and unfortunately I was right…"

"Henry… I…" Betty wasn't sure what to say.

"So I guess that's a no huh?" Henry asked with a sad expression on his face.

"A no to what?" Betty asked confused.

"A no to my marriage proposal. You don't want to marry me, one reason being because you have feelings for another man."

Betty looked down at her plate for a moment thinking and then she looked back up at Henry. "Henry… I think… I don't know…I mean.. I don't…" Betty looked flustered and was floundering her words.

A moment of clarity hit Henry. He reached over and lightly grabbed Betty by the shoulder. "You're not ready." He stated. "You're not ready for marriage. It's not what you want... I should have known better than to throw a marriage proposal at you… That was so stupid of me." He let go of Betty's shoulder and stood up.

"Henry, you're not stupid." Betty declared. "You're one of the smartest men I have ever known."

A hint of a smile came across Henry's face. "Yeah." He uttered half heartedly. "So smart, that I couldn't recognize the turmoil that my own girlfriend was going through." An apologetic look came across his face. "I'm sorry Betty. I'm so sorry. I understand now that I should let you go…"

A worried look came across Betty's face. "Let me go?!" She got out of her seat and went to stand closer to Henry. "Henry what are you saying?"

Henry stepped closer to her and gently stroked her cheek. "I'm saying that we should probably end things." He clarified unhappily.

"Henry maybe we should…"

"I've already given Mode my two weeks notice. I gave them that four days ago, Betty. Charlie and the baby are going back to Tucson this weekend. I won't be too far behind them." At this moment tears started streaming down Betty's face, and Henry started to wipe them away.

"Don't cry." He told her softly. "I think it's for the best. I think that this is what should happen. I want to be near my child and you… you have dreams Betty and a future here in New York. This is where you want to be. This is where you belong with your family and friends."

"And without you?" Betty asked, the tears falling harder.

Henry nodded, a pained expression in his eyes. "And without me." He wiped away some more tears with his hand. "But you Betty you're going to be fine. Because you're strong and smart, and.. Beautiful… you're going to be okay…" His voice trailed off.

He stepped closer to Betty and hugged her tightly. He hugged her like that for a while and she held onto him, cherishing every moment of their hug. He finally released her and kissed her on the lips. It was a tender and sweet kiss filled with love and Betty realized that it was also a good bye kiss. They kissed for a while longer and then Henry let her go. She stepped back a little and looked up at him.

"I'm going to miss you Henry. You're a wonderful man, one of the best men I have ever met." She told him honestly and genuinely. Henry smiled at her sincerity and touched her cheek again. "And you are one heck of a woman Betty Suarez. I know that you are going to do great things in the future and you will capture your dreams." He predicted.

"You really think so?" Betty asked hopefully.

"Of course, I do." Henry assured her. "It's just something I know."

Henry smiled at Betty, and she returned his smile, her eyes still wet with tears. "I'll call you before I leave and I'll write you. I would like to keep in touch, to keep track of all of the dreams that you capture, if that's okay, with you?"

Betty nodded. "Of course it is. And I want to see pictures of how big Daphne gets." Henry nodded. He smiled at her one more time. "Bye Betty."

"Bye Henry." He turned to walk away and Betty ran to hug him one more time. After they hugged again, they released each other. "I'll keep in touch." Henry assured her and then he left the kitchen.

Once he was gone, Betty sat back down in her chair absorbing all that had just happened. She rested her hand on her head and closed her eyes, thinking about Henry and all of the good times that they had together. She thought about how she had fell in love with him, all of the time they had spent together, all of the things they had done together, and finally how much she would miss him. The tears started flowing again, and Betty sat in the kitchen by herself for a while longer, resting her hand on her head and letting the tears flow.


	51. Chapter 51

-1**Thanks for the reviews, Beatrice, m1ssP1ggy, Maria7992 and Katrina.**

**Chapter 51**

"You're not moving in with us are you?" Amanda asked Betty, placing some papers down on her desk. "Gio and I have a nice arrangement going on, and if you move in… Well you know what they say Two's just right and Three's… company Way too much company, that will eat up all the delicious food that Gio makes for me. "

"What?" A confused look came across Betty's face. "Why would I move in with you and Gio?" She asked Amanda perplexed.

"Because you and Henry have broken up, you probably need a place to stay because you're homeless and what better place to stay than with the other man that loves you…"

"Whoa.. I'm not moving in with Gio." Betty stated firmly. "Amanda I just got out of a relationship, I'm not going to rush into another one." Betty grabbed the stapler off of Amanda's desk and stapled the papers in her hand. "And I have a place to stay. I live with my family remember?"

Amanda nodded. "Of course, you're still staying with your dad, Enrique, your sister Helena and your cousin Juan."

"My father Ignacio, my sister Hilda, and my nephew Justin."

"_Right_. Ignacio…, I kind of like him. And his flan."

"Yeah, well. I have a place to stay with my family, I'm not going to go out and move in with another man. I'm fine where I am at right now. I am just fine."

Amanda raised her eyebrow. "Are you sure you're fine?" A concerned look came across for her face. "I mean you just broke up with a man that you were very in love with. A man who you fought hard to be together with, back when you were with whiny Walter, and then when he was with annoying redhead. Then when annoying redhead, got pregnant…You've been through a lot with Henry… I know you're going to miss him." Amanda looked at Betty with a sympathetic look on her face.

Betty sighed, a wave of sadness washing over her. "Yeah, I am but…, I have to move on. And I will…"

Amanda smirked. "With Gio?" She asked coyly.

A small smile came over Betty's face. "I just broke up with Henry and I need time to get over him, but maybe once I have time to deal with this break up and get over him…"

"Then you'll be apart of a Bio pairing." Amanda chimed in.

"Bio? What's Bio?" Betty asked curiously.

Amanda smiled knowingly. "_Bio_. Betty and Gio. That's what I would call you and Gio if you two guys get together. I mean you and Henry were Benry, and you and Gio would be Bio."

Betty laughed. "You gave me and Henry and me Gio couple's names? Like Tomkat and Brangelina?"

Amanda nodded. "Yes, you're not apart of Hollywood and you and your men may not be as glamorous as Tom and Katie and Brad and Angelina, but yes I gave you guys couple names." Betty looked at Amanda, with an amused look on her face.

Amanda shrugged. "What? I was bored."

"Well, I don't know if there is going to be any Bio anytime soon, I think that I need to be alone for at least a little while before entering another relationship. And personally I prefer the couple name of Getty, I think it has a better ring to it."

Amanda rolled her eyes. "Okay, Getty it is then." Just then Amanda's phone rang. She picked it up and answered it. "Hello, Mode's Offices? Yes, we still have that event going on. Of course. I'll connect you right now." Amanda connected the caller and hung up the phone. She looked up at Betty. "That was Jill's Flatstone's assistant. She wanted to assure us that Jill would be donating clothes to auction off for our "Mode Gives Back" charity event. She is the fifth designer to call this morning that is going to donate clothes for this event."

Betty smiled. "That's great! We are going to raise a lot of money for a lot of different charity organizations. I am so glad that Daniel decided to do this event this year. We get to help others out, and it gives our magazine good publicity. I think that it is going to be a fantastic event."

Amanda nodded. "Yeah, I think it's going to be great as well. I admit in the past, I haven't cared a lot about the less fortunate, but ever since my apartment burned down and I lost everything… well it changes the way I see things at least a little. Of course, I'm still about the benjamins a lot, but now I know what it's like to lose a lot of things that are valuable to you and to be without. I'm bringing Kyle to the event and he's interested in donating some money."

" Amanda that's awesome."

"Yeah, I'm going to get him to bid on at least one of the famous designer's dresses for me. That way he can help out a good cause and can help keep me looking fabulous at the same time."

Betty smiled and looked down at her watch. "I have to go run some more errands for Daniel. Bye Amanda."

"Sayonara, Betty." Betty left and the phone rang again and Amanda picked it up and answered it, and continued to do her work at Mode.


	52. Chapter 52

-1**Chapter 52**

"You look fantastic. " Gio complimented Amanda when she stepped into the living room of his apartment in a very pretty blue dress.

Amanda smirked at him and joked. " You'd so be all over this, if you weren't in love with Betty, and if you and me weren't soul mates, in a friendship ish type of way."

Gio laughed. "I think you hit the nail on the head, when you said we have a friendship _ish…_type of relationship." Gio paused thinking for a moment. "I can't believe you've got me saying _ish."_

"Ish is a good thing., and can make a great adjective if you attach it to certain words." Amanda smiled at him and sat down beside him on his couch smoothing out the bottom of her dress.

"You think that Kyle will like this dress?" Amanda asked.

Gio nodded. "I think that he will _really_ like it." He turned to face Amanda. "He really likes you."

Amanda smiled. "I like him too. He's a nice guy. We've been on quite a few dates and they've been nice."

"Of course it helps that he's very rich now, but even without all the money, he's still a pretty nice guy."

"You still think that he is your dream guy?" Gio asked her curiously.

A thoughtful look came across Amanda's face. "I do. I mean I really do. Each date we spend together, I'm more convinced of it. I think that Kyle is the dream man that you were supposed to lead me to. I enjoy the time that we spend together, and I really like spending time with him. He also has a really good sense of humor."

Gio nodded and then smiled. "Good. I'm glad that you like him. He's a good man Amanda." Gio looked down at his watch. "I guess he'll be arriving in the next half hour to take us to that charity event at Mode." He looked at Amanda. "Are you sure you want me to come along? I don't want to impose on your and Kyle's date."

Amanda nodded. "Yeah, because Betty's going to be there and like I told you she broke up with Henry, so here's your chance to really go for it with her."

"Amanda she just broke up with him. I don't think that Betty is ready to jump into another relationship so quickly." Amanda smirked and scooted closer to Gio. "Gio, A lot of times, when a woman breaks up with a man that she really cares about she is very vulnerable. So vulnerable that she could very easily turn to another man romantically…"

Gio frowned. "You mean like a rebound? Amanda… I don't want to be the rebound guy for Betty. That's not what I want at all. I want to be _the _guy for her."

Amanda rolled her eyes. "Okay, Okay, so you want to be _the_ guy.. . That's fine. But you know Betty is hurting right now and she could use a friend to help get her through this breakup with Henry. And you could be that friend, and then you could be more than just a friend to her. You two could become closer. _Much_ closer."

Gio sighed. "I do want to become closer to Betty. But I want her to have the time that she needs to get over her breakup with Henry completely. I don't want there to be any residual feelings for Henry left, if we should get together. I want to have a fair chance with her. A _real_ chance with her. And I can't have that chance, if she is still upset about her breakup with Henry and if she is turning to me to make her forget about Henry. I want her to be over Henry, by the time that we get together. I want her to be able to give her heart to me, without all of the baggage left from her relationship with Henry."

"Wow, you're very demanding about the type of love that you want." Amanda joked. "No, I get what you are saying. Still there is no reason why you can't spend time with her as a friend for now. So Come with us to the charity event tonight at Mode, and just talk to her."

She placed her hand on Gio's arm. "Gio you've helped me find my dream guy and I want to help you land your dream girl." Gio smiled at Amanda's sincerity. "Okay, I'll come along with you and Kyle and I'll talk to Betty and try to be there for her as her friend."

"For now." Amanda repeated. "Not forever." Gio nodded and he and Amanda talked for a while longer until Kyle came to pick them up and take them to the Mode charity event.


	53. Chapter 53

-1**Thanks for the reviews, m1ssgp1ggy, Maria7992, and Rltsweetie22591**

**Chapter 53**

"Guess Who?" Amanda felt someone's hands around her eyes. She smiled when she recognized their voice. "Marc!" She exclaimed. Mark took his hands off of her eyes and she turned around to face him. "You're back."

Marc smiled at her. "I am."

"But I wasn't sure when you would be back. I thought that you were out being evil with Wilhemina, doing who knows what with who knows who, who knows where."

"I was definitely doing all of that." Marc stated. "But Willie's plan got derailed and here I am." Marc eyes shifted to the cute tall blond man beside Amanda.

"Who are you?" He asked curiously. Kyle stuck out his hand for Marc to shake. "I'm Kyle Sletherson. You must be Marc. Amanda has told me all about you."

Marc shook Kyle's hand and sized him up. "Hmmm. That's funny. Because Mandy hasn't told me anything about you. But anyways nice to meet you Kyle. So you've been seeing Mandy?" Marc probed.

Amanda put her hand lightly on Kyle's arm. "Yes, Marc, Kyle and I have been seeing each other." She confirmed. Marc then crinkled up his nose, and began sniffing the air. He gave Kyle a knowing look. "Wow you smell like… you're wealthy." Marc leaned closer to Kyle and sniffed him some more. "But it's new money. You weren't born with it. You've just gotten your hands on millions. So tell me Kyle how did you become rich?"

Kyle gave Marc a perplexed look surprised at Marc's assessment of him. "Marc!" Amanda exclaimed. "Stop sniffing my boyfriend!" She turned to Kyle and smiled apologetically. "I'm sorry that my best friend is sniffing you. Marc can smell people with money from a mile away, it's his sixth sense."

Marc nodded. "It is." He grabbed Amanda by the hand. "Excuse us for a moment Kyle, I need to talk to Mandy in private." He dragged her away from Kyle. "I'll be back." Amanda called out to Kyle. Kyle nodded with an amused look on his face.

Marc dragged Amanda to a corner of the room at the Charity event, so that they could be alone. Once they got to the corner, he let her go and looked at her with an excited look on his face. "Whoa, Mandy you landed a rich man!" He exclaimed.

"I tried to call you Marc, multiple times to tell you what's been going on. A lot has happened since my apartment burned down. But after I called you that one time, I couldn't get through to you again. I guess you were too busy doing evil stuff to pick up your phone, or maybe your cell phone didn't get a signal wherever it was you were at."

A thoughtful expression came across Marc's face. "It was probably a combination of both things." He admitted. "But anyway, I'm here now. So tell me about Kyle. He's cute. And he's rich, right? My paydar isn't off is it? According to my paydar he's worth at least 10 million?"

Amanda nodded. "He was left money in a will by some old chick that died, that he had befriended in the restaurant where he works. She left him 12 million dollars."

Marc smiled. "My paydar never fails. So... how long have you been seeing him?" He asked.

"For a little while. We have been on some dates and they have been great." Amanda informed him. "I had met him when I went into Gio's restaurant to get a sandwich. We kind of hit it off and he asked me on a date. He had asked me to go see one of my favorite bands the Passions Clippers."

"I love them." Marc exclaimed.

"Yeah, they're great. And Kyle loves them as well. So he asked me to go their concert with him. I said yes, but then when it came time for our date, he didn't show up. I was pretty upset about that, and I went to tell Gio about it. Gio had told me there was a good explanation about why Kyle didn't show up for our date, and then he offered to take me home." Amanda paused for a moment. "But then when Gio took me home, that was when we found out that my apartment had burned down."

Marc nodded listening to what Amanda was saying. "Well, after my apartment burned down, I had nowhere else to go and then Gio offered to let me stay with him. And so I took him up on his offer and then a little while later, we found out that Kyle had been left the money from the lady in her will, and he was busy dealing with that and that's why he hadn't shown up for our date."

"12 million dollars is a good enough reason to stand you up for." Marc commented.

Amanda smirked at him. "I know, once I heard about Kyle being left all of that money… my anger towards him went away pretty quickly."

Marc nodded. "I'll bet."

"Things between Kyle and I have been great. Really great. It is just like Linda predicted. She said that Gio would lead me to my dream man and I believe that he did. I believe that Kyle is my dream man, and I owe that all to Gio. Just like I owe him for saving my life the times that he did. Gio's been a great friend, we've become quite close you know."

Marc pouted. "Closer than you and me Mandy?" He asked.

Amanda smiled at him. "We've become close. What Gio and I have.. It's different from what you and I have… I can't quite explain it. But it's nice. Really nice. I have really enjoyed living with him since my apartment burned down." Amanda told Marc about how close her and Gio had become, the things that Gio had done for her, and how nice it was to live with him. "I have been saving quite a bit of money since I have been living with him, I think that I'll save up some more and stay with him for a while longer, if it's okay with him. And then I'll…"

"You can stay with me now." Marc interrupted. "I'm back so you can stay with me."

"Well… I really like staying with Gio, Marc. He's been a really good friend. He even cooks for me, and he did find me my dream man. So… I think I'll continue to stay with him." Amanda stated.

Marc frowned. "But I'm your _best _friend, and you were going to stay with me the night your apartment burned down. Had I been around, and Gio not been around, I would have been the person that you would have leaned on. But I had business to tend to with Willie, and I was unable to be there for you. But now I'm able and willing. And really wouldn't you rather live with me, than stay with the ham guy?"

This time Amanda frowned. "Gio is more than just the ham guy, Mark. He's my friend. And he's a good guy. And plus he makes all type of sandwiches, his Reubens are to die for. I really care about him, and I…"

"And you like him more than me. I've been replaced by the sandwich maker." Marc blurted out in a jealous tone.

A perplexed look came across Amanda's face. "What?… Marc… me replace _you_? That's impossible. I mean I care a lot about Gio. I do.. But I could never replace you. You are my best friend. And you can be deliciously evil, something that Gio is not capable of being. And sometimes, I need that in my life. Just like I need a person with integrity like Gio in my life. I… well, I guess I need you both. But I'm not trying to replace you with Gio, that's not even possible."

Marc nodded, feeling slightly better. "Well you're right. he could never replace a person of impeccable fashion and taste such as myself. And you're right, I can be deliciously evil, something that I doubt that Gio is capable of."

Amanda smirked. "Right. But it was nice that you were uh… jealous?"

Marc smiled and rolled his eyes. "Sorry about that. I was getting territorial of my Mandykins. I can get that way with the people that I care about. Let's try not to mention it too much shall we?"

"Right." Amanda linked her arm through Marc's. " Now, escort me back to my millionaire." She ordered him. "Will do." Marc promised and they both made their way back to Kyle.


	54. Chapter 54

-1**Chapter 54**

"Isn't this nice?" Sage commented to Paul as they stepped inside the room where the Mode Gives Back Charity event was being held.

"Yes, it looks quite nice." Paul replied. "Why am I here again?" He asked curiously.

"Because… I uh…wanted to hang out with you." Sage stated. Her eyes scanned around the room. "And I wanted you to see that I like to give back to the less fortunate, because I know that you're all about giving to those that are in need."

"Hmmm.. Right." Paul was unconvinced of his sister's reasons for wanting him to attend the Mode Gives Back charity event. He looked at her. "Look Sage, I know that you are a very giving person, and I like spending time with you as well, but come on what is the real reason that you wanted me to come here?"

Sage smiled at him. "Hmm… well…" Her eyes scanned the room some more, and they rested upon Marc, Kyle and Amanda. Paul saw who she was looking at and frowned. "Sage…" he began.

Sage looked up at him. "What?" she asked innocently.

"Sage, I can't believe you… Well, yeah, I can because, you like to meddle. You brought me here so…"

"So maybe you'll bump into Amanda and maybe figure out why you feel the way you do about her."

"Sage we spent a little time together one night at that hotel party. And now you're trying to play match maker. I told you… I'm not going to even… she has a boyfriend, and she reminds me of Leslie." Paul stated.

"But the way that you were looking at her that night, Paul, if you could have seen your face, you would have thought,… I still think that it could be love at first sight."

Paul shook his head. "Sage, I don't need or want you trying to set me up with someone else's girlfriend, who reminds me of my ex-girlfriend. That sounds like a recipe for disaster."

Sage laughed. "Oh come on Paul. Don't be such a downer. Look you're here now and she's here. And if you want to talk to her you can, and if you don't well..., I won't make you. How about that?" She looked at Amanda again. "She's looks really pretty doesn't she? Blue is a good color for her. But I imagine she could wear a lot of colors and look good."

Paul stared at Amanda. _She is very pretty_ he thought to himself, and he really liked the way that her dress fit her. He thought that she looked fantastic.

Sage saw her brother staring at Amanda and smiled again. "You too would look hot together." She commented.

Paul took his eyes away from Amanda and looked at his sister. "Sage why don't you focus on your own love life and find yourself a decent man." He stated bluntly. "How about that Gio guy, what's going on with you two anyway?"

Sage frowned for a moment and then sighed. "I… like him. But… I don't know, it just seems like he is in love with someone else. I have gotten that vibe from him for a while now. I don't know who it is, but I think that he cares deeply about someone else. So that's why I haven't really tried to pursue anything romantically with him. We do stuff together but as friends. But I don't think that he's interested in me like that…" Paul saw the look on his sister's face and he regretted how he had spoke to her. He put his arm around her shoulder. "Hey sis, I'm sorry." He apologized.

"You're a wonderful woman, very smart and beautiful and you should be beating off men with a stick. I'm sorry I said that you should find a man, I was just… trying to get you to stop talking about my love life and to stop trying to fix me up. I shouldn't have said what I did the way that I did..." Sage smiled at Paul. "It's okay, big brother. But I care about you and I want you to be happy because you're a great guy and any woman would be lucky to have you. Including Amanda."

Paul smiled at her. "I know Sage. But I… I can handle my own love life or lack of it. You take care of you. Okay?"

Sage looked up at him. "I can't help but worry about you, and I can't promise to not meddle sometimes when it comes to you, but I'll try to cut my meddling down a little."

"Well, I'll take what I can get." Paul said. He looked around the room. "Hey I see Gio. It looks like he's making his way toward Amanda and her boyfriend. Why don't you go over and say hi?" He suggested.

Sage nodded. "I will. Are you coming?" She asked. "You can say hi to Amanda." She suggested slyly. Paul shook his head at his sister's determination to play match maker for him. "I guess." He stated reluctantly. "I don't know anyone else at this place." Sage and Paul then made their way over to Gio, Kyle and Amanda.


	55. Chapter 55

-1**Thanks for the reviews, m1ssp1ggy, pmaree79 and Beatrice.**

**Chapter 55**

"Hi, Gio, Amanda, Kyle and Marc." Sage greeted everyone and smiled at them.

"Hi everyone." Paul smiled at them as well. After he looked at them for a moment, his eyes briefly met Amanda's. His eyes rested on hers for a moment and then he drew his eyes away from hers. Marc noticed the look that Paul gave Amanda and he raised his eyebrow.

"So, are you auctioning off some of your clothes tonight?" Gio asked Sage. Sage nodded. "Actually I am, I am auctioning off six dresses from my evening line."

"Wow, that's pretty generous of you." Gio commented smiling at her. Paul put his arm around Sage. "That's my sister a very generous woman. A kind generous, talented and beautiful woman." He stated looking down at her. Sage looked up at him with a curious expression on her face.

"It looks like we are surrounded by lots of generous people tonight." Amanda commented. She wrapped her arm around Kyle's waist. "Kyle and I intend to help out some good causes tonight. We're going to help the needy as well get some fabulous clothes for me." She smiled at him.

"And for me!" Marc exclaimed moving really close to Kyle and Amanda. "I see that Marcus Papperson is donating some suits to auction off tonight. There is this navy blue one, and light grey one that would just go great with my eyes…Grey goes well with my eyes…" He looked at Amanda and Paul giving them a puppy dog look.

"Well, Marc, I was going to get Kyle to bet on some clothes for me, I can't ask him to buy suits for you as well. Come on Diva, that would be kind of … weird."

"Oh come on Mandy we're practically twins." Marc pouted. "And I know I've just met Kyle but he's practically my brother in law."

Amanda and Marc looked at Kyle, who had a look on his face, which was a mixture of amusement, confusion, and a little bit of discomfort. "I ummm… well…I guess I can bid on some suits for you and donate more money for good causes."

Marc clapped his hands together. "I love you." He told Kyle and quickly pinched Kyle's face. "He's a keeper." He told Amanda grinning.

Gio tried not laugh at the expression on Kyle's face. "So I guess we should go find some seats before the bidding begins". Gio suggested. Everyone began to make their way towards some seats in the front of the room, including Marc who rushed over quickly and got one very close to the stage where the clothes would be brought out on.

Gio ended up sitting beside Marc, Sage sat beside him and then Paul, Amanda and Kyle sat in some of the other seats in that row. Daniel came out on the stage and introduced himself to everyone in the room. He spoke for a little while informing the audience about some of the clothes from the different designers that would be featured in the charity auction and then the bidding began.

There were quite a few people at the event and there was a lot of bidding going on. Kyle bid on three dresses for Amanda, and two suits for Marc. During one of the times, that Kyle was bidding on a dress for her, he was constantly trying to outbid another man, who was trying to buy the dress for his wife. Amanda got very excited when this was happening, because she really liked the dress that was being auctioned off and she wanted Kyle to outbid the other man.

With her eyes still on the dress, she impulsively reached out to the side of her and grabbed what she thought was Kyle's hand and squeezed it to encourage him to keep bidding on the dress. The hand that she grabbed was warm and firm, and Amanda held onto it for a couple of seconds.. She then took her eyes briefly off the stage and turned to her side and realized she was holding Paul's hand, instead of Kyle's. She had reached out to the wrong side of her. Her eyes met Paul's and she blushed quickly dropping his hand. "I'm sorry." She apologized. "I thought you were Kyle."

"No problem." Paul said quickly, thinking about how soft and delicate her hand was.

He shifted his eyes away from her and looked back on the stage, and Amanda turned to her other side where Kyle was at. He hadn't noticed that Amanda had grabbed Paul's hand by mistake. His eyes were going back and forth between the man that was still trying to outbid him and the dress that Amanda really wanted. A few moments later the other man gave up, and Kyle was able to get the dress for Amanda. Amanda reached out and gave him a hug once that happened. Paul's eyes looked at them quickly while they were hugging and then he looked away from them.

The auction continued for a while longer and every item was bid on and Mode ended up raising a lot of money for several charity organizations. During the bidding, Gio saw Betty standing across the room with Christina, smiling at how much money Mode was raising for charity.

He caught her eye once and she waved at him. He waved back smiling at her. After the auction was over, it was announced that there would be hors d'oeuvres served and everyone got up, out of their seats. Across the room, Gio watched as Betty spoke briefly to Christina and then he saw her make away over to him and to the group of people that he was with. When she got to all of them. She smiled. "Hi everybody." She greeted them warmly. She turned to Kyle and put her hand lightly on his arm. "Thank you Kyle for donating the amount of money that you did. That is going to really help out a lot people in need."

Kyle smiled at her. "No problem Betty." He stated warmly. "It was for a good cause, and for a beautiful woman." He looked at Amanda and his smile became wider.

"And for an even more beautiful man." Marc exclaimed happy about the suits that Kyle had bid on for him. He looked around. "When do we get our clothes?" He asked excitedly. "I don't know." Kyle stated. "I guess I have to donate the money first. I wonder who I give the money to."

"Oh you just go over there to Wendy and she'll take care of everything for you." Betty instructed him pointing to a brunette woman at the corner of the room, who was gathering all of the donations from the people that had bid on the clothes at the event.

"Thank You. I'll be back." Kyle told her and he headed in the direction that Wendy was in to stand in line and pay his money.

Sage looked around. "I'm going to find some of the people that I work with to make sure that my dresses get to the people that paid for them. And I want to personally thank the people that bid on my dresses tonight for charity. I'll be back." Sage then left as well. And then Marc left to speak to a designer that he admired.

Gio, Betty, Amanda and Paul were left together. "I guess, I'm going to go get some of those hors d'oeuvres." Gio stated. "Does anyone else want any?" He asked. "I'll get some as well." Betty stated and he her and made their way to the tables where the hors d'oeuvres were.

Amanda and Paul followed behind them. "So…" Gio began as they were walking to the table. "You look great." He complimented her about the red dress that she wearing, admiring the way that it fit her. Betty smiled. "Thanks." She said, her face growing slightly warm. She tucked her hair behind her ear. "Justin picked this dress out for me. I rarely let him dress me, but lately he's been pestering me a lot more than usual about doing so, so I let him pick out this dress for me for tonight. He said it looks professional yet sassy."

"Justin knows what he's talking about." Gio smiled at her. "How has everything been?" he asked her.

"Okay." Betty said grabbing a plate off the table. "Work has been good. My family's doing good. And well, even though Henry left…" She paused looking at him, before continuing on. "Henry, well he left a few days ago for Tucson, we… we decided to end things." Betty told him, a sad expression on her face. Gio nodded, not quite sure what to say. "I'm…. I know how much you cared about him.." He stated quietly.

"I cared about him so much Gio… but it was for the best. We were in different places in our lives and well it was just best to end things." She looked into Gio's eyes, his dark brown eyes bearing into hers with an earnest, sympathetic look. "Yeah… Betty… I do know how much you cared about Henry and break ups can be tough, so if you, need someone to talk to, or if you want to get out sometimes and go to a movie or something…"

"Well, I don't know if I am going to be up for movies, for a while Gio… I think I might need to be by myself for a while…"

"As friends, if you just want to hang out as friends for now. I'm a good listener, and a lot of fun. And no pressure remember?"

Betty smiled, remembering what Gio had said about not wanting to pressure her. "No pressure." She repeated. "I'm not up for a movie right now, but if I am…"

"You'll call me?"

"You know what? I will."

"Good." Gio smiled at her, his eyes locking with hers for a moment. He then turned his attention to the table. "Hmm this looks good." He grabbed a plate and began putting some food on his plate, including some of the mini turkey burgers and some Black Bean Bruschetta. Betty grabbed a plate as well and they stood together and ate and talked some more.

Further down away from them, Amanda and Paul had already grabbed some food and was eating in silence. After Amanda had finished eating, she threw her plate away, and looked at Paul. "That was really good." She commented. "A lot of my dad's friends like Bruschetta. I went over to this party that he had one time, where a lot of his friends, were at and one of the first things that they ate up very quickly was the Bruschetta_._Who knew that brueshetta was really popular with ancient rock stars…"

Paul finished eating and also threw his plate away. "Your dad is friends with a lot of rock stars?" He asked her curiously.

"Yeah, and my dad is a rock star." Amanda told him.

"Who's your dad?"

"Gene Simmons."

"Really?" Paul asked surprised. "Your dad is an iconic rock artist?"

Amanda smiled pleased at Paul's comments. "You think my dad is iconic? I mean when I think of iconic singers and musicians, I think of people like Elvis, Bob Dylan, Madonna, Bono, pre surgery Michael Jackson, but my dad… you think so?"

A thoughtful expression came across Paul's face. "Those people that you mentioned are definitely considered icons by a lot of people, but Gene Simmons, he's known by a lot of people as well. Not on the level as the artists that you mentioned, but a lot of people have heard of "Rock and Roll All Nite" and distinguish your father and his band from other bands because of their style and also the face paint that they wore."

"I listened to "Rock and Roll All Nite" a lot when I was in high school. Marc thinks that Kiss was a cheesy rock band, and Kyle doesn't care a whole lot for their music. He tried to be polite when he told me that but I can tell he thinks they suck. but _you_ like Kiss?"

Paul nodded. "I like them. I mean they aren't my favorite rock band or even one of my favorites, but I like some of their songs, and I think they have made some mark on music."

Amanda was flattered by Paul's comments about her father's band. "What are some of your favorite rock bands?" She asked him curiously.

"I like a lot of different bands and artists from many different styles. I love The Who, The Rolling Stones, Led Zeppelin, AC/DC, The Clash, Nirvana,… I really enjoy many different types of rock bands."

"I love the Rolling Stones." Amanda gushed. "Those old geezers can rock. I have to admit that I'm surprised that you like the bands that you do, I would have pegged you as a man that likes J_azz. _You know you being a professor and all. I mean Don't like eight five percent of teachers prefer Classical Jazz as their favorite music? I always thought that's what my teachers listened to when they went home to wind down or whatever teachers do after the sun goes down."

Paul laughed at Amanda's comments, amused by her assumptions.

"What's so funny?" Amanda asked.

"I have never heard _that _before. I'm sure that not all teachers would list classical jazz as their favorite type of music. Not that there is anything, wrong if they do like that type of music. Some of that is good stuff."

Amanda smirked. "So you do like Classical Jazz? Is that what you listen to, when you're grading papers, or reading and writing poetry, or reading the dictionary…"

"I listen to classical jazz every time I read the dictionary. I have read through the entire dictionary 20 times already." Paul joked.

"Really?"

Paul smiled at her. Again his green eyes washing over her. "No, I was kidding. I only read the dictionary, when I need to look up how something is spelled or how a word should be pronounced."

"I'll bet that since you're an English professor you probably don't need to use it that often."

"There are times, when I need to use it." Paul admitted. "A dictionary is a very valuable tool and it comes in handy."

Amanda nodded. "Right. Maybe if I had used it more in school, I wouldn't have cheated on as many tests as I did." She stated. "So… okay you don't read the dictionary all of the time, but you read poetry?"

Paul nodded. "Yeah I love poetry. I like Walt Whitman, Ralph Waldo Emerson, Poe…"

" I found out a while ago, that my late mother Faye Summers really loved Poetry. It was something that a lot of people didn't know about her. But I read that she did in one of her diaries." Amanda confided in him, not sure why she was doing so. "There was this one poem that I read in one of her diaries, I think it was a love poem. I can't remember who wrote it but my mother wrote that it was one of her favorite poems. I think it was by Lord…someone or another."

"Lord Bryon?" Paul suggested.

"Yes, that's it." Amanda exclaimed. "It was called She walks in Beauty…"

"She walks in Beauty like the night." Paul finished for her. "That's a great poem."

"Yeah, I loved it. And I'm not really into poetry that much. But that was really nice and I was surprised that my mother would like something so… _beautiful. _From what I have heard about her, she's wasn't exactly the warmest person. Actually she was considered downright evil a lot of the times." Amanda paused for a moment thinking.

"But that poem… I can remember a little bit of it, but probably not past the first line…" Amanda closed her eyes for a moment, trying to remember some of the poem. "She walks in beauty like the night..." She frowned. "Darn that's all I remember."

"Of cloudless climes and starry skies." Amanda opened her eyes when she heard Paul's voice reciting the poem. "And all that's best of dark and bright, meet in her aspect and her eyes."

Amanda quietly stood still as Paul recited the poem to her, her eyes not leaving his face. She was mesmerized by the beautiful poem, and his voice. His voice sounded very soothing as he recited the poem to her and his eyes, were so full of … feeling and depth , a nice blend of sincerity and strength. As Paul recited the poem her eyes stayed locked with his. He finished and Amanda smiled.

Various emotions were going through her. She felt really good, and touched, but there was also a twinge of sadness there. "Thank you." She told Paul quietly. "I don't know a whole lot about my mother. I know that she was hated by a lot of people and did a lot really bad things. But … that poem was something good that she liked, something beautiful that she cared about…knowing that she liked that poem and hearing it makes me feel closer to her. You know?"

Paul nodded understanding. Amanda smiled at him again, and he returned her smile, his eyes washing over her face. They looked at each other for a short while longer in silence, smiling at each other and then they heard a voice. "Well everything is taken care of. Amanda." Kyle stated looking at her. "You can go pick up your dresses from the designers who made them, and Marc can pick up his suits." Amanda turned to Kyle, taken out of her trance. "What?" She asked confused for a moment. "Oh, right of course. Yeah, I guess I better do that."

She looked at Paul again and then headed off with Kyle to get her dresses and Mark's suits. Paul stared after her for a moment. Sage had finished handling her business and was making her way over to Paul. She had saw him and Amanda staring and smiling at each other and she was very curious to find out what had happened between them. She was still pretty sure that her brother had strong feelings for Amanda, even though he barely knew her and wasn't willing to acknowledge those feelings yet.

She saw the way that he looked at her, and she knew that he felt something strong for her. As Sage made her way over to Paul she also noticed Betty and Gio some feet away talking and laughing with each other. She then noticed how Gio was looking at Betty, with a happy look on his face, and like he adored her… like he… and Sage realized finally who Gio was in love with.


	56. Chapter 56

-1**Thank**s **for the reviews, Katrina, m1ssp1ggy, Maria7992 and starletlaur. I appreciate your reviews and comments.**

**Chapter 56**

"So I saw you and Amanda smiling and staring at each other." Sage mentioned to Paul while he was driving her home. "What were you two talking about?"

A slight smile came across Paul's face, as he remembered his and Amanda's conversation. "Just stuff." He replied.

"Wow, professor, thanks for all the details." Sage remarked sarcastically rolling her eyes. "Geesh Paul, what type of stuff did you talk about?"

Paul glanced quickly over at Sage who was looking up at him eagerly awaiting to hear the details about his and Amanda's conversation.

His smile became a little bigger and he turned his attention back to the road. "We talked about bruschetta, rock music, jazz music , the dictionary and poetry." He informed her.

"Wow, that's a smorgasbord of topics." Sage commented amused.

"Yeah, Amanda is…there is more to her than I thought." Paul remarked, a note of surprise in his voice.

Sage smirked. "Hmmm. Maybe you already knew that there was more to her than just a pretty face, but tonight you found out what some of that was." She suggested slyly.

"Sage…"

"Hey, I stand by what I have been saying Paul. You are drawn to her for a reason."

"Sage…" Paul glanced at her again

Sage held up her hand to stop his protesting. "Nope, I believe that you are Paul. So… she's a fan of Jazz music and Rock music?" Sage asked.

"I don't think that she really cares for Jazz music, but she does love Rock music. She loves the Rolling Stones… and her dad's a rocker as well."

"Who's her dad?"

"Gene Simmons."

"The guy from Kiss?" Sage asked surprised.

"Yup. That Gene Simmons."

"Wow, that's kind of cool." Sage commented.

"I thought so too." Paul stated.

"So… you guys talked about the dictionary as well? And poetry?" Sage asked quizzically. "Really?"

Paul nodded. "Yeah, she told me that her late mother loved poetry and that one of her favorite poems, was by Lord Byron. It's called She Walks in Beauty like the Night. It's a very beautiful poem, very romantic…"

Sage smirked. "Hmmm…"

"Amanda said that this poem was one of her mother's favorites. She tried to recite it, but she couldn't remember most of it. So I recited it for her. I…"

Sage sat up in her seat and looked at Paul, with a pleased and excited look on her face. "So you recited her mother's favorite poem to her? Talk about romantic."

A sheepish look came across Paul's face. "She couldn't remember it… so I thought I'd help her out and recite it for her."

"That was more than helping her out Paul." Sage commented smiling knowingly. "That was a romantic gesture for the woman you l…"

"Sage!" Paul exclaimed agitated. "I barely know her."

"Yes, but you found out more about her tonight, didn't you? And you are obviously happy about what you found out about her. Who goes around reciting poetry to women they barely know for the heck of it? Okay some people do, and I know you love poetry, but you kind of put yourself out there a little bit tonight, for Amanda big brother. That means something."

Paul shook his head. "It was nothing."

"Oh, I think that it was. There is nothing wrong with putting yourself out there for a person that you care about if you're brave enough. And if you feel like you've got a chance with them. I think that you might have a chance with Amanda, big brother. I know that she has a boyfriend, but I believe that they just started dating, and she's not in love with him yet.

So I think you still have a chance. If you really care for her it's best that you go for it… before she falls for him. When that happens things just get really complicated, and you really don't have a shot…" Sage's voice trailed off and Paul noticed a twinge of regret and sadness in her voice.

He glanced at her, "What's wrong Sage?" He asked and then it hit him. "Oh, this is about Gio isn't it?"

Sage sighed. "I figured out who he was in love with tonight."

"You did?" Paul asked.

"Yeah, it's Betty the girl that came over tonight and said hello to all of us. And who Gio was talking and laughing with, when all of you guys were over at the table eating and talking."

"Yes, Betty.. She seems like a nice girl and… she's the one that you think that Gio is in love with?"

"I don't think Paul. I _know_. I could tell by the way that he was looking at her. He adores, her and he's in love with her. It was written all over his face. Heck,it's similar to the looks that you give Amanda, except that I think it's stronger and that Gio has loved Betty for a while now.

I don't know why I didn't pick up on it before, but I have barely spent any time around those two together. I have just mostly been spending time with Gio. I had met Betty a while ago and have talked to her a couple of times, but I didn't know that she was the one that Gio loves…"

"So, now that you know that Betty is the girl that Gio loves, what are you going to do?" Paul asked Sage.

Sage shrugged. "I guess there isn't anything I can do. He loves her, I don't think that they are together, but I guess it will only be a matter of time before they get together. My loss."

"But you really like Gio…" Paul remarked. "I don't know Sage, maybe if you told him about how you feel…"

Sage sighed and shook her head. "There isn't any point Paul, he loves Betty… so I don't think that I should say anything to him about my feelings for him. I guess we'll just remain friends." Sage looked out of her car window with a disappointed look on her face.

Paul heard the disappointment in his sister's voice and he felt bad for her. "Are you sure Sage?" he asked.

"Yeah, I think it's for the best." Sage replied not really sure if it was the right thing to do.

"If you say so…" Paul stated not sure whether his sister was making the right decision about not telling Gio about her feelings for him.

Sage and Paul sat in silence for a while longer, and only talked a little on their way to drop Sage off at her apartment.


	57. Chapter 57

-1**Thanks for the reviews and comments Rltsweetie22591, m1ssp1ggy, and Livia55555G**

**Chapter 57**

"Oh, Okay, I want to snuggle up to my suits, but I don't want them to wrinkle." Marc told Amanda as he was laying across his bed talking into his phone to her.

"I love my dresses so much that I would sleep in my one of them. But then of course no would see how fabulous that I would look in one of them." Amanda was sprawled out on the bed in Gio's extra bedroom, with a phone in her hand.

"You really did hit the jackpot Mandy with Kyle." Marc stated. "He's rich, and he's also cute and he actually seems like a _nice _guy. He's like a triple scoop of delicious gourmet, non fat yogurt that will satisfy your hunger and not make you fat. You're a lucky woman Mandy."

Amanda smiled to herself. "I know Marc. I really like him, he's very sweet and thoughtful." Amanda gushed.

"Well, hold onto him." Marc advised her. "And try not to get distracted by delicious looking man candy… like that guy's Sage's brother, the smoking hot one that was caressing you with his eyes all throughout tonight."

"I wasn't distracted by Paul, Marc." Amanda protested. "And he's more than just eye candy, he's very smart. And actually interesting. I mean I've never been fond of teachers, but I tell you if I had teachers like him, when I was going to school, I would have flunked each grade twice. He's great… and well he knows poetry. I mean he recited this poem to me…"

"Whoa he recited a poem to you?" Marc asked curiously. "What type of poem?"

"A romantic poem, one of Faye's favorites. She loved poetry you know."

Marc snickered. "That witch loved poetry?"

"That _witch_ was my mother, Marc and yes she loved poetry especially romantic poems. She wasn't all about torturing people, having affairs and wrecking lives. Sometimes she'd take a rest from that stuff and read a poem, or maybe she read poems, while she was doing that stuff. I don't know… but it was important to her and when I read I her diary I found this out. She even wrote some of the poetry in there that she loved."

Amanda paused for a moment thoughtful. "I have never been a big fan of poetry, I always thought that poetry in general was rather boring, but reading some of the poems, that my mother loved… They were beautiful and reading them made me feel closer to her."

"Aw… you sound just like a girl in a D list Hallmark movie." Marc told her.

"Well, Faye's love of poetry is apart of her, and I guess that makes it apart of me, since I'm apart of her."

"The part that she gave up." Marc stated bluntly.

Amanda frowned. "Marc, I would like to have at least a halfway serious conversation with you about my mother, but you can't seem to see past the bad stuff that she did…"

"She didn't do a lot of good stuff Mandy. In fact I can't recall any good thing that she did."

"I'm sure there were some good things that she did. And maybe I will find out about those things some day. But anyway, Paul just recited the poem to me…. And we talked about Rock music… he's likes a lot of different rock bands…"

"Really. I would have pegged him for a Classical Jazz man."

"That's what I thought too, but he's a big rock fan. We like some of the same bands." Amanda informed him.

"Hmmm…sounds like you and him made a connection." Marc mused. "And normally while I would totally be behind you dating a super hot man like that, you now have a very _rich _and _generous _boyfriend, who likes to pamper you and _moi_. And who on the cuteness scale is a couple of notches above acceptable. And that you don't need to mess things up with…" Marc paused playing with his hair for a moment.

"Paul's super hot, but Kyle is overall the better… _bargain_ as I should put it. He's rich, he's generous, he's kind, and he's cute enough. You should stick with Kyle and not test the waters with Paul."

"I'm not testing anything with Paul." Amanda told Marc defensively. "We were just talking. That's all. And he's more than just super hot, he seems thoughtful and like I mentioned he's very smart."

Marc chuckled. "Since when have you been interested in smart men, Mandy? I thought you liked them pretty dumb, because it's easier for you to control and manipulate them."

Amanda frowned. "Well yeah in the past, I've been attracted to men like that. But Paul is different, he is very smart and I like that… and well Kyle's no dummy either."

"_Right_. So you're attracted to a smart guy, it's not the end of the world, Mandy. And he's a _teacher _at that,…"

"Well, an English professor."

"Okay an _English professor_, a teacher with some rank, but anyway.…you need to keep your focus, on what's important Mandy and that's Kyle. Hot men are a dime a dozen, But rich men will only last as long as you can get them to stay married to you, long enough so that when they divorce you, you get a hefty chunk of their money. And I would like to see you make it down the aisle with Kyle Mandy, so that you have that chance."

"And come on Mandy let's face it, it's not like there are rich men all around you vying for your attention… and certainly not nice generous rich men. You really need to take this chance and grab it and hold onto it. And besides… we both know you haven't had a serious boyfriend, since the DVD player became popular."

"That's not true!" Amanda exclaimed. "There was Jeremy…"

"Don't even get me started on that travesty of a relationship. And I wouldn't call that very serious. And while you dated other men, you haven't had a serious boyfriend, in quite some time Mandy. Kyle could end up being the first serious boyfriend, you've had in a while. And if things go well, you could end up getting fitted for one of Vera's Wang's spectacular wedding gowns."

"Well yeah…" Amanda replied a little reluctant.

Marc noticing her reluctant tone and became worried. "Remember Mandy you think Kyle is your dream man, like Linda said. She told you that Gio would lead you to your dream man and well he did. Kyle is his best friend. And you first met Kyle when went to get a sandwich from Gio. So Kyle must be your dream man. I don't see it being anyone else."

"Yeah… I guess you're right Marc." Amanda replied thinking. "My dream man is probably Kyle."

"Of course I'm right Mandy. And you need to remember that and don't let a hot poetry reciting, rock music loving English professor or anyone else make you forget that."

"Yeah..okay, you're right. Kyle is probably my dream man and I do really like him so I should focus on him."

"Exactly, Mandykins, keep your focus on Kyle."

Marc and Amanda talked for a little while longer, and then they hung up. Amanda turned off the light in the room and pulled the covers on her and closed her eyes. As she was drifting off to sleep, the poem that Faye loved and that Paul had recited to her went through her mind.


	58. Chapter 58

-1**Thanks for the reviews, m1ssp1ggy and dude. **

**Chapter 58**

"So go the movies with the man then." Hilda told Betty sipping a cup of hot cocoa. "Going to the movies with Gio would be fun, and it would be nice if you had fun again."

"I know Hilda but…" Betty paused stirring her cup of hot cocoa. "Well, I just broke up with Henry and I think that it might be a while before I'm ready to go to the movies with a man or date again."

"But you said that Gio offered to take you to the movies as friends. And that he isn't going to pressure you into a relationship. So why not hang out with him as friends? And see where things go. You can go the speed that you want and if something happens, it happens. Gio's a good man, and he loves you. You have admitted to having romantic feelings for him, so if things get romantic between you two it will be okay."

Betty sighed. "Yeah, but I guess I'm just worried about getting involved with someone again. After my relationship with Henry and now our breakup, I just don't want to hurt like this again, if Gio and I get together and don't work out."

"Aw Betty." Hilda grabbed her sister's hand , to comfort her and reassure her. "You know, getting involved in another relationship is like getting back on a bike after you've fallen off. Or better yet like getting a new bike and riding it after you've fallen off your old one."

Betty frowned at Hilda's analogy. "Well, I've been through two new bikes in the past couple of years and have fallen off of both of them. Maybe I should stop riding bikes for a while and just walk by myself. It would be less painful and less work."

Hilda shook her head at Betty's comments. "Now that doesn't sound like the Betty Suarez I know. You're all about working hard. And you do need to work to make a relationship work. And sometimes you can work as hard as you can and it still doesn't work out. But that's life. Things aren't going to always be sunshine and roses even if you do find things that you want like a good man."

"But in spite of the ups and downs in life and that people can experience in relationships, you can still find happiness and maintain it. And who knows in spite of what happened with you and Walter and you and Henry, maybe you can find that with Gio. You know what they say the third times the charm. If you give Gio a chance, that could be one of the best decisions that you ever make." She released Betty's hand and then patted it.

"But you won't know until you take that risk."

Betty gave Hilda a smile smile. "You're right. I won't. But I still want to take some time until I'm ready to really date again. But like you said I guess going to the movies with Gio and hanging out with him sometimes for the time being wouldn't hurt."

Hilda smiled at her sister. "No, it wouldn't hurt at all. So are you going to call him?''

"Well, I don't have any free time this week, but I think that next weekend, I might be free. Maybe I can call him some time before then, and we could plan to go the movies or something."

"Sounds good to me." Hilda commented taking another sip of her hot cocoa.

"Yeah, it kind of does." Betty remarked her face brightening up some. Her and Hilda sat in the kitchen a while longer, drinking their hot cocoa and enjoying each other's company.


	59. Chapter 59

**Thanks for the reviews, m1ssp1ggy, and Livia55555G. :). I appreciate your reviews and comments.**

**Chapter 59**

"I can't believe I let you drag me to this place." Gio commented wearily looking at Amanda. "I just wanted you to know that this goes against a lot of what I believe in."

"I know, I know. But I thought that you were the best person to come with me here today. I could have brought Mark…but…" Amanda's voice trailed off.

"But why didn't you?" Gio asked.

"I don't know, I just thought it would be best if I came here with you. But you can't tell Marc that I bought you here. He would probably be upset, if he found out. He was already jealous of you and thought that I was replacing him with you. He's probably not going to be very happy if he finds out that I took you here. Especially since he was the person that first bought me here, and every time that I have come here it has been with him. But I just thought it would be best if you came with me today. You've been such a good friend to me, and have helped me out a lot. Just like Linda said that you would."

Amanda turned to look through the window of Linda's psychic shop. She had decided to go there that morning after her conversation with Mark the other night and after having a dream about Kyle and Paul that she really couldn't remember. All she knew was that they were both in the dream. She had decided to go see Linda to see if Linda could predict more about her future and if she could maybe clear up some things for her.

She had decided to drag Gio along because she trusted him and for some reason thought that he was the better choice to take for today's reading instead of Marc. After she took some time convincing him, Gio had finally decided to come along reluctantly and now they were both standing outside of Linda's place looking through her window.

"Okay, I'm going to go inside. Are you coming?" Amanda asked him.

"I think I'll just wait out here. You come out when you're ready to leave."

"Are you sure Gio? Who knows she might can predict something for you."

Gio shook his head. "No thank you. I don't want any psychic reading."

"Well..okay. I'll go in there now. And you'll stay here while I go in there?"

"I'm not going anywhere." Gio promised Amanda.

Amanda stepped inside Linda's place. Linda had her back turned to her and turned around when she saw Amanda.

"Why, hello Abbott." She greeted Amanda smiling. "Where is Costello?"

"Who?" Amanda asked confused.

"Your curly headed male sidekick. He didn't come with you today?" Linda asked her.

Amanda shook her head. "No…I bought my other friend, well my "G"."

Linda raised her eyebrow. "Oh really? Is that the guy standing outside?"

Amanda nodded.

"Well why didn't your "G" want to come in?" Linda asked curiously.

"He doesn't believe in psychics." Amanda informed her. Linda nodded in understanding. "Aw one of _those_." She lead Amanda over to her couch. "Well sit down…tell me what's been going on. Has your life been in danger any more times, or have you met your dream man?"

"Well actually… my life hasn't been in any danger lately which is a good thing. I don't know when it will stop being in danger."

"Maybe the danger has passed. Do you feel like it has?"

Amanda thought for a moment. "Well…I kind of do. I think it's quite possible that the danger has passed and my life is not at risk anymore."

Linda smiled. "Well hopefully the danger has passed and your life won't be in immediate danger anymore." Linda scooted closer to Amanda on the couch. "So what else is going on… have you by chance met your dream man yet?"

Amanda nodded. "I think so."

"Really? And what is he like?"

"Well his name is Kyle and he's a friend of my "G" Gio, and he's a good man. He's very funny and kind, and cute and just a little while ago he inherited 12 million dollars from a friend of his who died. So he is also pretty wealthy."

"Well, he does sound like the type of man that you told me that you were looking for. Sounds like you got exactly what you wanted to me." Linda stated.

"Yeah…" A confused look came across Amanda's face. Linda noticed this look.

"Okay, but why the confusion? Is there more to this story? Kyle is what you want right?" Linda probed.

"Yeah…I think so. Kyle's great, really great… but I well… I had a dream the other night about him and this other guy, Paul. I couldn't remember exactly what the dream was about, I just remember these two guys were in it."

"Who's Paul?" Linda asked.

"Oh, this guy that I met. He's the brother of Gio's friend Sage. He's an English Professor and he's really hot. I mean _really _hot. His eyes are gorgeous. And he's also nice, and he's very smart… he likes poetry, like my late mother did, and he even recited to me this poem that my mother loved…"

"Hmm…" Linda listened intently to what Amanda was saying about Paul. She thought for a moment. "Amanda… do you like Paul?" She inquired.

"Yeah, I do, he's seems like a nice guy."

"No, I mean do you _like_ him? Like romantically?"

Amanda paused pondering Linda's question, her mind wandering to the first time that she had met Paul and to their conversation the other night. She felt her face grow warm when she thought about him. "I… don't know him that well. I've only talked to him on two occasions…" She stated carefully.

"That's not what I asked. And you seem to know some things about him and like what you know." Linda remarked. "Amanda, do you _like _him?" She asked again.

Amanda shrugged hopelessly. "I don't really know what to say. I think he's really hot and he's got some great qualities about him. But I also like Kyle and think that he has some great qualities about him as well. And I think that Kyle might be my dream man like you predicted. Because Kyle is the better bargain." Amanda remarked Marc's comments going through her head.

"And Gio lead me straight to him. So I think that Kyle is my dream man. Whatever I think of Paul probably won't amount to much, if Kyle is my dream man like I think that he is."

Linda raised her eyebrow. "The better _bargain_? What an umm…interesting thing to say."

"Well I think he is. He's the better package overall, not only is he nice, but he's also cute, and he's very funny, and he's rich."

"Ahh…." Linda commented, understanding a little more. "So you think that overall he's got better qualities than Paul, including the fact that he's rich."

"Well yeah… I think so. I mean I don't even know Paul that well. I have been on quite a few dates with Kyle and I really like him. And yes, him being rich is great. And that is something that I wanted in my dream man." Amanda stated.

"Right. I remember you told me that your ideal dream man would be rich, famous, and handsome. But that you would settle for a combination of at least two of those qualities."

Amanda nodded. "Exactly. And Kyle is rich and cute. That's close enough for me."

"Hmmm… Amanda do you remember when I told you that your dream man could be all the things that you said were most important to you, that he could have money, be good looking and be famous. Or that he could be a combinations of some of those things. And when I also said that he could be none of those things, but still somehow end up being exactly what you wanted and needed."

"I remember." Amanda stated.

"Well, maybe just because someone has some of the things that you said you wanted in a man doesn't necessarily mean that they are your dream man. I mean Kyle may be rich and cute, and that fits your criteria for an ideal man, but maybe your dream man, won't have as many of the qualities that you think are ideal…. Like maybe he won't be rich…" Linda suggested. "And you know Amanda that's okay as long as he makes you happy and he's who you truly want."

A perplexed look came across Amanda's face. "But if Kyle is my dream man, well he is rich."

"Maybe your dream man isn't Kyle." Linda suggested..

"Huh? But you said that Gio would lead me to my dream man, and he lead me straight to Kyle." Amanda stated anxiously. "And I really like Kyle."

"Okay, Okay, Okay…" Linda held up her hand to calm Amanda down. "Maybe your dream man is Kyle. But I was just thinking that if you're having romantic thoughts about some other guy…maybe…"

"I really like Kyle." Amanda interjected. "And I think that he could be the one for me, because he does have some of the qualities that I said I really wanted in my dream man. Plus other qualities, like him being funny. I didn't specifically mention that I wanted that, but a sense of humor is a nice quality for a man to possess. And Gio did lead me to him, like you said that he would. So I do think that Kyle is my dream man." Amanda paused the worried look still on her face.

"I mean if he's not and it's some other guy out there, that I haven't even met yet… I just think it's better if it's Kyle. I don't want to go hunting for my dream man, anymore. I've been searching for him long enough. I don't want to search any longer for some man, that I haven't even met yet."

_Maybe you have found him and it's not who you think it_. Linda thought to herself but didn't vocalize her thoughts, because she didn't want to confuse and upset Amanda any more than she thought she had.

"Okay… maybe your dream man is Kyle. He definitely has some of the qualities that you said that you wanted in a man, and he fits my prediction. So maybe it's him."

Amanda let out a breath. "I hope so."

"You know if that's what you really want, me too." Linda told her honestly. "So… is there anything else that I can do for you?" She asked Amanda.

"No, I'm fine. But thanks anyway. I'll pay you now."

"No charge." Linda told her.

"Really?" Amanda asked surprised.

"Yeah. We really didn't do a psychic reading. It was more like two girlfriends talking. Plus you have come in here a few times, before. This time I won't charge you anything."

_And it doesn't take a psychic to see what your dilemma is darling. _Linda thought to herself._ You're just involved in a good old fashioned love triangle._

"Thank you." Amanda stood up and looked outside to see Gio, who was still standing there. "Well, I guess I'll go now." She stated.

"Right. Are you sure, you don't want to bring your "G" in, I wouldn't mind meeting him."

"He doesn't like psychics." Amanda informed Linda.

"Hmmm… well I'll walk you out. Hopefully I won't scare him." Linda joked. She walked Amanda to the front of her door and opened it. Gio looked and saw them. Amanda stepped out and Linda stepped closer to the door and peered at Gio. She looked at him for a moment and then closed her eyes. She opened them and then smiled at him. "Hello…" She greeted him.

"Hi…" Gio greeted her cautiously.

"I'm glad that things are finally starting to pick up for you and her." Linda told him.

"Who?" Gio asked confused.

"The woman that you love, Beverly, Betsy, Bethany…. I'm not sure what her name is but it starts with a B."

"Betty?" Gio asked surprised.

"Ah…Betty that's who she is. Well I'm glad that things are finally moving along with you two. But she's very hesitant, about moving forward with you. Just keep being patient."

Gio nodded surprised at Linda's comments. "I uh…will. Thanks."

"And be gentle when you are dealing with the spice as well." Linda instructed him.

"The spice?" Gio asked confused.

"Yes there is another that cares for you as well. A good woman. Be kind to her as she cares for you romantically. She might make a move towards you, I don't know, it's up in the air, but you seem bound to Betty. But the spice is quite lovely… and wants you. And you care for her as well, even though I would guess not to the extent that she cares for you, and not to the extent that you care for Betty. But be gentle and kind to the spice."

"I uh.. Okay…" Gio wasn't sure what the heck, Linda was talking about. He just knew that she was kind of freaking him out and he wanted to get away from her. "Um, Bye..". He told her. Amanda told her good bye as well and Gio gently grabbed Amanda by the arm, and tried to get away quickly from Linda.


End file.
